The Samsung Group supra-enterprise labor union's Samsung Electronics chapter (the supra-enterprise union), the largest union at Samsung Electronics, demanded the withdrawal of a Labor Standards Act amendment that would allow part of wages to be paid in local love gift certificates. The union argued the bill undermines the principle of paying wages in currency and could threaten workers' livelihoods.
Issuing a statement on the 10th, the supra-enterprise union said, "The provision that, with a worker's explicit consent, part of wages may be deducted or paid in something other than currency as prescribed by presidential decree, such as local love gift certificates, is a dangerous attempt that shakes the foundation of wage payment."
On the 8th, lawmaker Park Min-gyu of the Democratic Party of Korea introduced as the lead sponsor an amendment to the Labor Standards Act that would allow part of wages to be paid in something other than currency, such as local love gift certificates, when there is a worker's explicit consent or a collective agreement.
The current Labor Standards Act requires wages to be paid in currency. The supra-enterprise union viewed that paying wages in vouchers of unclear value instead could harm workers' livelihoods. It said local love gift certificates are difficult to treat the same as currency because their usage area, affiliated merchants, and validity period are restricted.
The union also pointed out that, in the employer-worker relationship, it may be unclear whether consent is given of free will. Even if explicit consent is set as a requirement, it argued there is a possibility that, in practice, it would lead to coerced consent.
The supra-enterprise union said, "If you are confident that local love gift certificates are no different from currency, we hope you apply this experimental attempt not to workers' wages but to the salaries of the lawmakers who put their names on the bill."
The Federation of Korean Trade Unions and the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions also demanded the withdrawal of the amendment the previous day. They said that if wages can be paid in local currency or vouchers instead of cash, the stability of wages and the right to choose could be weakened.
In the semiconductor industry, sensitivity over compensation systems is growing as discussions on performance bonuses and excess profit recoupment intersect. Among employees at Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, there is also a continuing push to encourage participation in a National Assembly public consent petition titled "Call for suspension of review of the semiconductor excess profit recoupment policy and withdrawal of policies that undermine corporate competitiveness."