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President Lee: Samsung union's claim on semiconductor project is 'absurd'

From Hankyoreh · () Korean

Translated from Korean, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • President Lee Jae-myung criticized Samsung's super-union's demand to include the "Honam Semiconductor Mega Project" in wage negotiations.
  • He argued that such demands would extend labor dispute subjects to all corporate management activities, calling the union's stance "absurd."
  • The president also pointed to the widening K-shaped polarization due to the AI revolution and urged a concentrated policy effort to mitigate it.

President Lee Jae-myung strongly criticized Samsung's super-union for attempting to include the government's "Honam Semiconductor Mega Project" as an agenda item for their 2027 wage and collective bargaining negotiations. Lee stated that if such demands were accepted, it would effectively make all corporate management activities subject to labor disputes, deeming the union's position "absurd."

If you build a plant in Gwangju, I might be transferred, so it's a subject of labor dispute... This is an absurd claim.

— President Lee Jae-myungResponding to Samsung's super-union's claim regarding the Honam Semiconductor Mega Project.

"When they say that building a semiconductor plant in Gwangju is a subject of labor disputes, implying that if the union doesn't agree, it cannot proceed, the public is understandably surprised," Lee remarked during a State Council meeting. He likened the situation to a union demanding a say in a company's sale of assets, arguing that such an expansion of labor dispute subjects would be endless.

Lee clarified that Samsung's investment in the Honam Semiconductor Mega Project is a management decision and should not be considered a subject for labor disputes. He also questioned whether the union's demand for profit-sharing based on operating profit percentages constituted a labor dispute, suggesting it was unlikely.

If you expand it like this, saying that selling management rights is also a problem because it could lead to a wicked employer who worsens labor conditions, where does it end?

— President Lee Jae-myungIllustrating the potential overreach of labor dispute subjects.

Expressing a personal opinion, Lee noted that the scope of labor disputes seemed to be expanding excessively. He recommended that the administrative branch establish clear standards through decrees or enforcement rules. In response, Minister of Employment and Labor Kim Young-hoon stated that the super-union's claims contradict the intent of the revised labor union act. The president also highlighted the growing K-shaped polarization exacerbated by the AI revolution, urging a comprehensive policy focus on alleviating this issue.

This is an absurd claim.

— President Lee Jae-myungCharacterizing the union's demand regarding the semiconductor project.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Hankyoreh in Korean. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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