Samsung Biologics Union to Launch Second Strike on November 6

The Samsung Biologics Win-Win Labor Union said on November 4 that it would launch its second strike on November 6 after negotiations with management broke down.

According to the union, about 400 members are expected to take part in the strike. Members in QC testing, QA and logistics, as well as those in indirect support roles within production departments, will participate. The union has about 4,000 members, so an estimated 10% are expected to join the November 6 strike.

The union said, "We plan to gradually expand the process-based strike while complying with the court's injunction," adding, "We want to emphasize that the door to negotiations remains open even during the labor dispute."

Samsung Biologics, for its part, said, "We continue to keep the door open to dialogue to reach an amicable conclusion to wage and collective bargaining negotiations, and our commitment to reaching an agreement through negotiations remains unchanged."

It added, "However, continued hard-line responses by the union, including expanding the strike, could make constructive dialogue and an agreement difficult to achieve. We will do our utmost to keep operations running smoothly and maintain quality stability so that patients and clients are not affected."

The Samsung Biologics union had originally planned to hold a three-week general strike in late October, but postponed it after the court substantially expanded the list of work activities prohibited during the labor dispute from three to nine. The union had agreed to resume negotiations on November 3.

However, on November 2, management proposed postponing negotiations to rebuild trust, saying the union had "unilaterally denied the status of management's bargaining committee members by demanding the complete exclusion and replacement of the company's chief negotiator." The union expressed regret and then announced a second strike on November 4.

Samsung Biologics' labor and management have been at odds for more than six months after failing to reach an agreement on wage increases and improvements to the personnel system.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.