Employees working on Samsung’'s semiconductor AI chips will receive a bonus of around €350,000 after signing a profit-sharing agreement.
The two Korea-based unions of the semiconductor manufacturer %He said 74 ’, or more than 60,000 ’, voted in favour of a deal that halted the 18-day strike action.
According to Korean news agency Yonha’, under the agreement, semiconductor workers are expected to pay the company's earnings to be paid in stock. %It will receive a performance premium equivalent to 10.5’ine.
According to Yonha’, if Samsung’'s operating profit exceeds the estimated 300 trillion won’ (EUR 172 billion) this year, bonus payments for more than 28,000 ’ employees in the company's chip division could reach 600 million won’ (EUR 346,750).
Yeo Myung-gu, vice president of Samsung Electronics, said after the vote that “Starting with the signing of this compensation agreement, employees and management will work together with one mind to strengthen global competitiveness, ” said.
“I would like to thank the labor union and all the employees for conducting the negotiations sincerely and not leaving the issue of dialogue until the end.”
According to the Korea Herald’, the deal came less than 48 hours after the Korean court overturned the injunction requested by five Samsung employees to suspend the collective bargaining process conducted by the company's union.
Samsung employees have been striking in Kore’ since last December, when they initially applied for a 7% pay increase.
Do other unions want the same thing?
Samsung’'s Korean semiconductor competitor SK Hynix’in was already operating profit last year %He's reportedly splitting his 10’ into bonuses. Within the scope of this new structure, chip employees will be able to %You will be able to receive bonuses up to 3,000’.
According to local media reports, employees of other Korean companies, including mobile network operator LG and internet company Kakao’, are now seeking AI-related bonuses and threatening strikes if conditions are not met.
Taiwanese semiconductor giant TSMC, meanwhile, averaged employees' profit-sharing premiums this year, according to Bloomberg’. %He promised to see an increase of 30.
A handful of European and global unions, including the Communications Workers of America (CWA) and the UK Trade Union Congress (TUC), want workers to get a fair share of “ from profits from the artificial intelligence boom.
Uni Global Union wants “ to distribute the economic prosperity created by artificial intelligence broadly and equally for the benefit of all humanity through global and national policies.
Euronews Next followed these unions to see if any collective bargaining action had been initiated to obtain similar guarantees for AI workers, but received no immediate response.
