Facing an unprecedented labor union risk, including a general strike and large-scale rallies, Samsung Electronics told employees that work must be carried out to maintain and operate safety protection facilities normally. The move came after the Samsung Electronics union signaled that even essential personnel might join the strike and rallies. The union is pushing back, saying the scope of the safety protection facilities the company mentioned is related to "production maintenance."
According to the industry on the 22nd, Samsung Electronics on the 20th posted an internal notice stating that "safety protection facilities must be operated normally even during strikes and rallies under Article 42(2) of the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act." It emphasized that essential personnel for this purpose cannot participate in strikes or rallies.
Article 42(2) of the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act stipulates that a union cannot suspend, abolish, or interfere with the normal maintenance and operation of safety protection facilities at business sites through industrial action. If violated, not only the union but also individual members can be held responsible for illegal industrial action. The union argues that because Samsung Electronics is not an essential public interest establishment whose strike would threaten the public's daily life and the national economy, its industrial action does not fall under Article 42(2) of the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act.
Samsung Electronics viewed the union's claim as a factor that could lead to illegal acts. In the notice, Samsung Electronics cited a finalized Supreme Court precedent (2020Na12248) and explained that even at general corporations, safety protection facilities must be operated normally during industrial action.
Samsung Electronics said the normal operation of safety protection facilities is also specified in Article 93 of the collective agreement concluded between labor and management and must be observed. It added, "The meaning of normal operation is to maintain weekday-level operations on weekdays and holiday-level operations on holidays," and "aside from requesting the union's cooperation for the normal maintenance and operation of safety protection facilities, we have not placed any restrictions on industrial action."
◇ "At least 20 trillion won in losses"… Samsung Electronics union hints essential personnel will join rallies and strike
▲ The Samsung Electronics branch of the Samsung Group supra-enterprise union (supra-enterprise union) ▲ the National Samsung Electronics Labor Union (Jeonsamno) ▲ and the Samsung Electronics Companion Union formed a joint struggle headquarters, held a strike vote in March, and won a majority in favor. Accordingly, they plan to launch a general strike for a total of 18 days from May 21 to June 7. On the 23rd of this month, they will also hold a large-scale rally at the Pyeongtaek campus.
The Samsung Electronics joint struggle headquarters is taking a hard line, saying it will inflict massive losses on the company. Choi Seung-ho, Chairperson of the supra-enterprise union, held a press conference on the 17th on "achieving majority union" and said, "The company is raising issues with facility maintenance and disposal of materials and supplies, but we confirmed in previous collective bargaining that manufacturing and technical personnel are not subject to agreement workers (union members who agreed to continue working during strikes and other industrial actions)," adding, "If we strike for 18 days, considering facility backup, the company will suffer losses of at least 20 trillion won to 30 trillion won." In effect, this hinted that even the minimum personnel needed to operate safety protection facilities could participate in the strike and rallies.
◇ Big gap between management and union on scope of "essential personnel"… industry concerns grow
In response, on the 17th, Samsung Electronics sent an official letter to the joint struggle headquarters sharing specific details on the personnel needed for the normal operation of safety protection facilities. According to the letter obtained by ChosunBiz, Samsung Electronics viewed 2,031 employees from 143 parts under "Global Manufacturing & Infrastructure" and the "Artificial Intelligence (AI) Center" as essential personnel needed for the normal operation of safety protection facilities, etc. That accounts for 80.7% of the 2,518 total employees in those parts.
The Samsung Electronics joint struggle headquarters immediately pushed back. In a statement on the 21st, they argued, "Designation of agreement workers is not a mandatory matter under law but a voluntary bargaining matter decided through labor-management agreement," and "there is no legally mandated scope like essential maintenance duties."
The supra-enterprise union in particular revealed the legal review by Law Firm Majung, hinting that more personnel than those designated by Samsung Electronics as essential could participate in the strike and rallies. Majung viewed that firefighting and emergency facilities and the safety and environment emergency response team (ERT), which prevents the spread of chemical hazards, need to work normally even during strikes and rallies. However, it determined that employees in other parts are either "partially recognized" as agreement workers or "excluded."
In the industry, there are concerns that if the Samsung Electronics union, contrary to the company's request, puts even essential personnel into strikes and rallies and production disruptions occur, irreversible damage could result. If the union pushes ahead with an illegal strike, it could lead not only to production disruptions but also to major safety accidents such as chemical leaks and fires, and to casualties. In particular, semiconductor equipment requires very complex backup procedures to ensure process quality when restarting after power shutdown. On the 16th, Samsung Electronics filed for an injunction with the Suwon District Court to ban the labor union's illegal industrial action, seeking a "provisional disposition banning unlawful industrial action."