On the 23rd, when the Samsung Electronics labor union holds a large-scale rally, about 30,000 people in total will gather at the Pyeongtaek campus. At the same time, Samsung Electronics shareholders have announced a counterrally across the street, heightening tensions amid concerns about possible physical clashes.
According to the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency and the Joint Struggle Headquarters of the Samsung Electronics Labor Union (hereinafter, the union), the union will hold a "4/23 struggle resolution rally" at 1 p.m. near the office complex building on the Pyeongtaek campus. The number of attendees the union reported to police is 30,000, but the union expects about 37,000 people to gather.
The Korea Shareholder Movement Headquarters (hereinafter, the shareholder side), which opposes the union rally, will also hold a counterrally starting at 10 a.m. the same day on Godeok International-daero in Pyeongtaek. The location is directly across from the union's rally site. The reported number of participants for the shareholder rally is 20.
The shareholder side said, "In response to Samsung Electronics employees' reckless demands for a 40 trillion won performance bonus and the shutdown of the world's best semiconductor plant, 5 million Samsung Electronics shareholders have risen up." It continued, "We can no longer leave Samsung only to management or only to workers," and argued, "Now shareholders will protect and defend Samsung in unity."
Some are expressing concern about large and small physical clashes as the two opposing rallies take place simultaneously. Police plan to deploy 363 personnel to the site to prepare for contingencies, including 41 from the Gyeonggi Nambu Regional Preventive Patrol Unit, 186 from three riot police companies, and 136 from the Pyeongtaek Police Station.
Samsung Electronics labor and management are currently at odds over the performance bonus payout rate. The union is demanding that 15% of operating profit be paid as a performance bonus. It argues that performance and compensation should be more closely linked. Management is proposing to maintain the existing performance bonus system while offering top-tier compensation in the industry, citing the need to consider the business environment and performance volatility. Labor-management talks have been at a standstill since the end of last month, when the union declared a suspension of negotiations.