By Park Jin-hai
Workers at major local car manufacturers and ship builders will take a two-week summer vacation en masse starting from next week.
Local manufacturers including Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors, GM Korea and Renault Samsung Motors as well as Hyundai Heavy Industries, Samsung Heavy Industries and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) will give summer vacations.
For Hyundai and Kia, all their production lines and company offices will stop operation between Aug. 3 and Aug. 7. The two largest carmakers will encourage employees to spend the vacation in local resorts, rather than overseas. Each employee will be given a 300,000 won summer vacation bonus.
GM Korea and Renault Samsung employees will have vacation during the same period. GM Korea will give a bonus of 50 percent of ordinary wages.
Renault Samsung will give 800,000 won to workers as well as a 7 million won bonus after finishing annual wage talks.
Ssangyong Motor’s summer vacation is scheduled to start between July 31 and Aug. 5.
Of the local shipbuilders, DSME started the summer vacation first on Monday. The firm, which is struggling from almost 3 trillion won in losses, started the vacation as planned on the same day its largest creditor Korea Development Bank began an audit. Its employees will have a two-week long vacation, receiving 500,000 won.
Hyundai Heavy and Samsung Heavy will begin its vacation from Aug. 3. Hyundai Heavy employees will take leave until Aug. 13, and be given a 50 percent of ordinary pay bonus.
Samsung Heavy workers will have the shortest summer leave between Aug. 3 and Aug. 7.