Thousands of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. employees have gathered at a factory complex south of Seoul to protest wage levels and are planning a potential prolonged strike that could disrupt the production of AI chips. Union organizers and police estimated the number of protesters reached 40,000, making it the largest demonstration in Samsung's history. If worker demands are not met, the union plans to begin an 18-day strike starting May 21.
The primary source of dissatisfaction among workers stems from what they describe as a significant bonus gap compared to rival SK Hynix. Song Yong-gi, who works in logistics for the assembly line at Samsung's chip division, stated, "In reality, many employees are leaving for SK Hynix. Ultimately, over 90% of employees work for their salary, and the pay gap has widened enough to drive these changes." Other Samsung employees also reported that a large number of colleagues have already left for SK Hynix.
The Samsung Electronics union argues that an employee in the chip division with a base salary of 76 million won (approximately $51,280) received a bonus of only 38 million won for 2025, less than one-third of the bonus paid to an SK Hynix employee at a similar salary level. Samsung has stated it will continue working to reach a swift agreement in wage negotiations. A Samsung official, who requested anonymity, noted that even a "single strike" causing production disruption could damage customer trust and take years to recover.
In September 2025, SK Hynix accepted union demands for wage reforms and substantial bonuses, intensifying frustration among Samsung employees over the pay disparity and leading to a surge in union membership. Samsung's union now has over 90,000 members, representing more than 70% of its workforce in South Korea.
A key issue is the union's demand to remove the bonus cap, currently set at 50% of the base annual salary, which management has rejected. Union officials claim that SK Hynix has already agreed to eliminate its bonus cap. Additionally, the Samsung union is calling for a 7% increase in base pay, allocation of 15% of annual operating profit for bonuses, and greater transparency in bonus calculation methods. Management has proposed using 10% of operating profit for performance-based pay and providing additional funds to ensure employees in the memory division earn more than their counterparts at competing firms this year.
Both SK Hynix and Samsung are among the world's largest memory chip manufacturers. SK Hynix is a major supplier of high-bandwidth memory chips for NVIDIA, while Samsung and U.S.-based Micron Technology also compete in this segment.
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