Samsung's Inter-Company Union Declares No Joint Bargaining Team, Suggests Separate DX Bargaining

The Samsung Super-Company Labor Union's Samsung Chapter (hereinafter referred to as the inter-company union), Samsung Electronics' largest labor union centered mainly around the DS (Device Solutions) division, announced that it will not form a joint bargaining team for next year's wage negotiations.

According to industry sources today, the inter-company union sent an official document containing this position to the Samsung Electronics Labor Union Donghaeng (hereinafter Donghaeng Union) earlier in the day.

The Donghaeng Union is the third labor union within Samsung Electronics, primarily consisting of employees from the DX (Device Experience) division, which handles home appliances, TVs, and smartphones.

The inter-company union stated, "Based on the current number of union members, we expect our union to become the bargaining representative union for 2027." It added, "However, taking into consideration unilateral withdrawals and provisional injunctions to suspend the validity of wage agreements that occurred during the operation of the 2026 joint bargaining team, we plan not to form a joint bargaining team for 2027 and instead proceed with a single bargaining system in accordance with the bargaining channel unification procedure."

As of the afternoon of August 20, the inter-company union had approximately 53,400 members.

The Donghaeng Union has about 30,500 members.

The inter-company union explained that it is preparing next year's bargaining demands focusing on raising working conditions across the board in the DS division, as well as improving compensation and treatment for System LSI and Foundry.

At the same time, it requested the Donghaeng Union side, "If you determine that it is difficult to fully reflect the union's position through a single bargaining system, please consider applying for a separation of bargaining units."

This is interpreted as effectively parting ways with the Donghaeng Union so that each division can conduct negotiations with the company separately.

The inter-company union appears to have judged that since employees in the DS division make up the majority of its members and it has secured the status of the largest labor union within the company, it is more advantageous to push for the stances of DS division employees alone rather than representing all of Samsung Electronics.

It also made remarks to the effect that it agrees with the policy of separating financial resources between divisions.

The inter-company union stated, "At the management status briefing hosted by DX Division Head Roh Tae-moon on August 19, the company officially acknowledged that differences in management performance and working conditions exist between divisions." It added, "This is consistent with the judgment made when the inter-company union, the National Samsung Electronics Union, and the Donghaeng Union entered into intensive negotiations in February 2026 with the stance of agreeing to separate financial resources by division, and we believe that the 2027 negotiations also inevitably require designing demands that reflect the realities of each division."

Meanwhile, claiming that the DX division was marginalized in the wage negotiations agreed upon in May of this year, the Donghaeng Union plans to hold a rally near the Samsung Electronics Seocho building on the afternoon of August 21.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.