Tensions between labor and management at Samsung Electronics are escalating toward a strike. This is not a simple demand for wage increases. After the artificial intelligence (AI) chip boom, SK hynix, a competitor, strengthened performance-linked compensation, bringing internal complaints at Samsung Electronics about the transparency and fairness of its pay structure to the surface.
On the 18th, according to the industry, the compensation systems at Samsung Electronics and SK hynix show clear differences in performance bonus formulas, payment structures, and how caps are applied. Samsung Electronics divides annual contracted pay into 20 parts and pays it as monthly salary and semiannual target achievement incentives (TAI). On top of that, an excess profit performance bonus (OPI) is paid separately at the start of each year, depending on the business unit's results. OPI is set at up to 50% of annual pay, and each business unit's payout rate is determined based on economic value added (EVA), which reflects capital costs in operating profit.
By contrast, at SK hynix, PI (productivity incentives), PS (excess profit performance bonus), and special performance bonuses account for a large share of actual compensation in addition to base pay. PI is paid twice a year, typically around 100% of base pay. The key is PS, paid at the start of the year. SK hynix runs a structure that allocates 10% of operating profit as the performance bonus pool, and with the recent AI memory boom and special performance bonuses added on, perceived compensation has jumped sharply. Some in the industry project that, including special performance bonuses, annual compensation per person could reach tens of millions of won to several hundred million won.
The essence of the conflict between labor and management at Samsung Electronics is the transparency of performance bonus calculations. EVA is a concept that reflects even the cost of shareholder capital, but the exact formula and the standards for reflecting expense are not disclosed. Even if results improve, the size of bonuses can change if the company reflects a higher capital cost, making it hard for employees to gauge their pay in advance.
In contrast, SK hynix has strengthened its linkage to operating profit, allowing employees to roughly calculate bonus sizes from results alone. The industry sees this difference in predictability as a key factor fueling a sense of deprivation within Samsung Electronics.
Differences in the "ceiling" of compensation have also widened the perceived gap. Samsung Electronics maintains a cap that prevents the OPI payout rate from exceeding 50% of annual pay. SK hynix, on the other hand, has effectively eased the cap on bonus payouts through labor-management agreements. Analysts say that even amid the same favorable cycle, Samsung Electronics employees are bound by the cap structure, while SK hynix adds special performance bonuses, widening the compensation gap from tens of millions of won to as much as several hundred million won.
The mood on the ground reflects this. An employee at Samsung Electronics said, "Whenever there's a chance, the prevailing mood is to move to SK hynix," adding, "The shorter the career, the stronger the intent to switch jobs." The employee added, "In the past, being at Samsung Electronics was considered competitive enough, but now there's talk that the hiring bar itself has risen because there are so many applicants to SK hynix."
In the past, Samsung Electronics' brand value and stability offset complaints about pay. But as high bandwidth memory (HBM) competitiveness tilts toward SK hynix and performance gaps widen, transparent and predictable compensation systems are emerging as an edge in attracting talent.
Industry watchers say this situation stems less from the absolute size of bonuses than from the perception that "improved results do not translate into my pay." A semiconductor industry official said, "There used to be a mood of holding on just for the Samsung name, but not anymore," adding, "The more critical the talent, the more sensitive they are to how directly results and compensation are linked."