Samyang Foods, leading the global K noodle craze with 'spicy chicken ramen', has decided to abolish special extended work hours and improve working conditions. This comes just a day after the production plant was embroiled in controversy over long-term two-shift work.
According to Samyang Foods on the 4th, the company will abolish special extended work hours at four domestic production plants located in Miryang, Gyeongnam, Wonju, Gangwon, and Iksan, Jeonbuk, starting this month. In this regard, a Samyang Foods official noted, 'The Miryang Phase 2 plant, which was completed in June, is currently undergoing safety work on the equipment,' and added, 'We expected to produce export volumes without special extended work from the end of the year when each line is operating normally, but since the operation rate is rapidly increasing, we decided not to carry out special extended work starting this month.'
Additionally, Samyang Foods plans to review improvements to the current 'two-shift' working system. However, due to concerns about wage fluctuations resulting from reduced working hours, discussions will continue to gather worker opinions.
Earlier, it was found that the weekly working hours for production employees at Samyang Foods exceeded 49 hours. In this situation, there were reports of additional Saturday work (special extended work) occurring 2 to 3 times a month, raising concerns about violations of the current legal standard of a 52-hour work week.
In response, Samyang Foods stated, 'Since the second half of 2016, there has been a surge in ramen export demands, leading to the temporary implementation of special extended work on Saturdays.' Additionally, the company commented that it receives consent forms for overtime work from production employees each month regarding Saturday special extended work. Special extended work can typically be requested when the workload significantly increases; however, it cannot be implemented without the personal consent of workers and must be authorized by the Ministry of Employment and Labor.
Currently, Samyang Foods has invested 90 billion won in upgrading equipment at the Wonju plant, 240 billion won in the Miryang Phase 1 plant, and 183.8 billion won in the Miryang Phase 2 plant to meet overseas demand. The company has also begun construction on production facilities in Zhuhai, China, for local production. A Samyang Foods official clarified, 'We have not only relied on special extended work without equipment investment.'