More than 6,500 Samsung Electronics workers in South Korea went on an “indefinite strike” on July 10. The workers reached the decision after the company’s management failed to address their grievances during the initial 3-day strike from July 7. Three thousand workers rallied in front of the company’s headquarters in Hwaseong, in the southern part of Seoul, the country’s capital, on July 10.

The strike and actions were led by the National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU), which represents 30,000 workers or 1/4 of the company’s workforce. Nearly 80% of union members voted to strike in April.

Prior to the strike, union members staged a walk-out in June in what was considered the first strike in the company’s history. The union has only been in existence for five years due to Samsung’s severe oppression and repression of labor rights. In 2020, Samsung was forced to “apologize” for its long record of union busting and other anti-labor measures.

Workers, in the main, are demanding a 6.5% increase in their wages, a small amout compared to the company’s huge profits. In the second quarter of this year, Samsung’s operating profit grew an estimated 15 times ($7.54 billion).

“Even though the operating profit is high, the company has been saying it’s in a crisis situation for over 10 years,” Son Woo-mok, president of NSEU. “Employees are increasingly dissatisfied with the lack of performance bonus increases,” he added.

Workers also demanded that the company change its bonus system. They said the bonus to ordinary workers is taken after removing the cost of capital from the company’s profits, while the bonus of its officials is based on their personal performance. They also want an extra day of paid vacation for unionized workers.

Many of those who participated in the strike were young workers, who believed they need the union to have fair working conditions. The union aims to increase participation in strikes to weaken production. A large part of production is currently automated, so the maximum number of workers in the company must unite to stop production.

“More and more workers within the company are becoming aware of why they need a union, to have a voice, and they are strengthening the union every day,” Son Woo-mok, NSEU president, said.