The largest union at Samsung Electronics, the Samsung Group supracompany labor union's Samsung Electronics chapter (the supracompany union), said it will take up Samsung Electronics' plan to build a second semiconductor fab (plant) in Gwangju as a bargaining agenda item in 2027. It said 84% of respondents in a union member survey opposed the project, and argued that a consultative body with the government, the company, and the union is needed given the possibility of large-scale reassignments and changes to working conditions.
On the 13th, the supracompany union issued a statement titled "What matters more than speed is a social consensus with workers," saying, "This project, which affects the workplaces and treatment of tens of thousands of people, should proceed based on dialogue with the union," and, "We intend to address the Honam semiconductor project in the 2027 bargaining."
The union said that a survey of members conducted over the weekend found that 84% opposed the project, considering reassignments, working conditions, and treatment.
The supracompany union argued that frontline workers' views were excluded in the project's promotion process. The union said, "The government talks about speed, but there is no visible plan for the people who will have to bear that speed," and, "Policy is being pushed forward without considering the intentions of union members and workers in the semiconductor industry."
It also said the company feels burdened by pushing the project. The supracompany union said that in two meetings held with Samsung Electronics, a company official said, "Even the management feels burdened," expressing a negative stance toward the project.
The union also cited as grounds that Jun Young-hyun, Samsung Electronics CEO (vice chairman) and head of the DS (semiconductors) division, mentioned the need to supplement the power supply plan. While announcing that it would invest about 400 trillion won in Gwangju to build two new semiconductor fabs, Samsung described Gwangju as a candidate site for the next cluster. It also presented infrastructure and support measures—such as securing power, water, and workforce, and residential conditions—as investment conditions.
The supracompany union argued that, based on the revised Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act (the yellow envelope law, a new labor law aimed at strengthening the bargaining rights of subcontract workers), the project promotion plan falls under the scope of collective bargaining. The union said, "Business decisions that affect union members' working conditions have also become subjects of bargaining," indicating it will discuss reassignments and issues related to workplaces and treatment with the company.
On the 29th, the government designated semiconductors, physical artificial intelligence (AI), and AI data centers as the "Korea great-leap three mega projects." In the southwest region, Samsung Electronics and SK will invest a total of 800 trillion won to build four semiconductor fabs and establish an ecosystem of partners and talent. The government plans to support the expansion of infrastructure such as permits, land, power, and water.
Of this, Samsung plans to invest a total of 425 trillion won in Honam. It will spend about 400 trillion won on two semiconductor fabs in Gwangju and build a 210-megawatt (MW) AI data center in Solar City, Haenam, South Jeolla. It will also set up an appliance innovation plant, an air-conditioning unit production facility, and a logistics center in Gwangju and Gochang, North Jeolla.
The supracompany union urged the government to agree to form a tripartite labor-management-government council, saying, "If this is a plan that neither the people who will work nor the companies that will invest are confident about, what is needed now is not speed but a process that builds trust."