Hyundai Motor may cave to unionists' demands again

By Jhoo Dong-chan

Hyundai Motor called for its union workers to return to work and resume negotiations over a wage hike, hinting the nation’s largest carmaker may surrender to their all-out strike again this year after suffering trillions of won worth of reduced car production.

According to industry observers, Tuesday, Hyundai Motor said in an official letter to striking union workers that “a number of small and medium-sized businesses plan to stage a boycott of Hyundai Motor cars while the government is reviewing the plan to take an emergency arbitration measure due to the prolonged labor dispute.”

The company added, “We should consider every option to normalize our production line and find the middle ground through dialogue. Let’s resume the negotiation for a wage hike this week to conclude it as soon as possible.”

In response, the union workers immediately held a committee meeting, and have decided to end their strike and return to work until Oct. 11.

The union, however, conditioned that if negotiations are not concluded by Oct. 12, it will instantly resume the all-out strike for a wage hike until Oct. 14.

Instead of staging a massive walkout, the union leaders set up a tent to hold a rally in front of the Ulsan plant, Wednesday. They also staged an overnight sit-in in front of Hyundai Motor headquarters in Yangjae-dong, southern Seoul, on the day.

They will also visit Ulsan Metropolitan City Hall, Thursday, and the Ministry of Employment and Labor in the Sejong Government Complex on the following day to demonstrate their struggle for a wage hike.

Union workers also warned that if the government intervenes by issuing an emergency arbitration measure, they will immediately hold a committee meeting to discuss holding another all-out strike.

Hyundai Motor’s union has refused to work overnight and staged walkouts 24 times this year since May 24. A series of the workers' walkouts have reportedly cost the carmaker more than 2.9 trillion won ($ 2.51 billion), or 131,000 cars of reduced production.

Apart from Hyundai Motor's loss, a total of 380 Hyundai Motor subcontractors, mostly small and medium-sized businesses, suffered approximately 1.3 trillion won in sales losses.

In late August, the company's union and management tentatively reached a collective bargaining agreement, under which the company would increase the base monthly salary by 58,000 won, raise annual bonuses by 350 percent and offer a 3.3 million won one-time bonus, among other things.

But 78.05 percent of the union workers voted down the agreement, sending wage negotiations back to square one. Union leaders then asked the company for more concessions, which management refused.

The union workers then began their first all-out strike in 12 years, paralyzing the domestic production plants of the nation's largest carmaker in Ulsan, Asan and Jeonju.