Samsung Electronics workers in South Korea began casting their ballots on Friday on a government-brokered pay deal that promises extraordinary bonuses for the company's memory chip division. But it has triggered a backlash from workers in other parts of the business who say they were left out of the spoils.
The deal, brokered this week by the South Korean government, averted an 18-day strike that would have threatened output at one of the world's largest chipmakers at a moment when its memory business is booming on surging artificial-intelligence demand.
Workers in the memory chip division stand to receive bonuses of around $416,000 this year. Those in the foundry and logic chip units will receive smaller but still substantial payouts, while staff in smartphones and home appliances will get considerably less, according to Reuters.
The Samsung Electronics Labor Union (SELU) confirmed that 32,882 of 57,290 eligible members had already voted by Friday, though results were not disclosed. The voting runs electronically until 10 am local time on May 27.
At a press conference on Friday, the National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU) publicly criticised the agreement, calling it a rushed outcome that had reduced bargaining to a single division's bonus.
A third body, the Samsung Electronics Co Union (SECU), which had walked out of the negotiating team before the deal was finalised, also attended the press conference, though its specific position was not made public.
Samsung declined to comment on the complaints.
Samsung stock closed 2.3 per cent lower on Friday after having surged 8.5 per cent on Thursday when the deal was announced.
The South Korean dispute is a far cry from the grinding battle Samsung's India workers have been waging.
At the company's Sriperumbudur plant near Chennai, workers launched a 37-day strike in September 2024 over wages and union recognition.
In January 2025, the Samsung India Workers Union (SIWU) was formally registered, making the Chennai facility only the second Samsung plant globally to win union recognition.
A landmark three-year wage agreement was finally signed in May 2025, securing a salary increase of up to ₹18,000 in direct wages over three years, along with improved insurance and leave entitlements.
However, 27 workers suspended during the 2025 agitation remain unreinstated, and their families staged fresh protests as recently as March 2026.
