Samsung Electronics Labor Union Tensions Escalate Over 'Kill' and 'Pipe Bomb' Threats Amid Performance Bonus Dispute

Tensions among internal labor unions at Samsung Electronics are spilling over from disputes regarding compensation and performance bonuses into controversies involving violent language and slander in online chat rooms.

The Samsung Electronics chapter of the Samsung Group's Super-Corporate Labor Union sent an official letter to the Donghaeng Labor Union, a non-semiconductor union, titled "Request for Official Stance and Measures to Prevent Recurrence Regarding Violent Language and Derogatory Remarks Directed at Executives, Employees, and Chairperson Choi Seung-ho in the Donghaeng Chat Room."

In the letter, the Super-Corporate Labor Union stated, "Through reports from union members, we have received materials showing violent expressions and derogatory remarks targeting Samsung Electronics executives and employees and Super-Corporate Labor Union Chairperson Choi Seung-ho in the Telegram 'Rights Union Members Chat Room' run by the Donghaeng Labor Union."

Screenshots of the chat room presented by the Super-Corporate Labor Union along with the letter contained high-level verbal abuse, including not only expressions to the effect of "I want to kill them," but also "I am at the point where I want to make a homemade bomb and throw it," and "I hope they meet the most painful and gruesome end."

Content disparaging specific executives, employees, or business division members was also included.

In response, the Super-Corporate Labor Union defined this as "a grave issue that goes beyond differences of opinion on compensation systems or negotiation results and can instill anxiety and humiliation in the parties involved and fellow employees."

It added, "We express regret over the fact that no measures such as warnings or deletions were confirmed to have been taken even after such remarks were posted in the Donghaeng Labor Union's chat room," and requested "a responsible explanation in writing by the 18th."

However, the disclosed materials are what the Super-Corporate Labor Union claims to have secured, and further verification is needed regarding their authenticity, the identities of the authors of each post, and the context of the conversations before and after the remarks.

At the root of this situation lies a conflict among members over performance bonuses.

As the gap in performance bonuses between the semiconductor sector and the non-semiconductor sector has widened significantly, conversations criticizing this have appeared across various chat rooms.

Reported by Jung Da-eun | Video by Seo Byeong-wook | Graphics by Lee Jeong-ju | Produced by SBS Digital News
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.