Photo : YONHAP News
Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong has apologized to the tech giant’s customers around the world after the company’s unionized workers announced plans to launch a general strike next week over performance-based bonuses.
Upon his return from an overseas trip on Saturday, Lee said he was sincerely sorry for causing anxiety and concern over “internal issues.”
The chairman also apologized to the South Korean people and thanked the government and officials for their efforts to resolve the situation.
Lee then emphasized that the unionized workers and others at the company were “one unit and one family.”
He said it was time to gather strength through wisdom and move in one direction, adding that he would “weather the storm” by himself.
Despite management’s proposal to resume talks, the company’s largest union announced that employees will walk out from Thursday through June 7 unless management agrees to set bonuses at 15 percent of operating profit, abolish the payout cap and systematize the bonus system.
The planned strike has raised concerns that the company could report losses of tens of trillions of won amid the ongoing semiconductor super-cycle, potentially harming the South Korean economy in the long term.