Analysis of 15 Affiliates of 4 Major Groups
Kim Ki-nam's Severance Pay Included 17.2 Billion KRW
Average Employee Salary Decreased by 11%
Last year, Samsung Electronics' 'highest paid' employee was Kim Ki-nam, Senior Advisor at SAIT (formerly Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology). The average employee salary decreased by about 11% compared to the previous year due to the semiconductor downturn. Chung Eui-sun, Chairman of Hyundai Motor Group, received an annual salary of 4 billion KRW from its affiliate Hyundai Mobis.
As of 9 a.m. on the 13th, an analysis of last year's business reports from 15 major subsidiaries, including the four major conglomerates, showed that Senior Advisor Kim received 17.265 billion KRW. This included retirement pay of 12.99 billion KRW, salary of 1.68 billion KRW, and bonuses of 2.445 billion KRW.
Following him was Lee Won-jin, former Vice President of Google and former head of Samsung Electronics Service Biz Team, who received 8.6 billion KRW (including retirement pay of 2.431 billion KRW). The third highest was Jin Gyo-young, former SAIT President and current advisor, who received 8.485 billion KRW (including retirement pay of 5.259 billion KRW).
Among active employees who received only pure salary excluding retirement pay, the highest annual salary was earned by Han Jong-hee, Vice Chairman and CEO of the DX (Device Experience) Division. Vice Chairman Han took home 6.904 billion KRW last year, including a salary of 1.467 billion KRW, bonuses of 5.306 billion KRW, and welfare benefits of 130 million KRW. No Tae-moon, President of the MX (Mobile Experience) Business Unit in the DX Division, received 6.193 billion KRW including bonuses of 4.824 billion KRW; Park Hak-gyu, Head of Management Support Office, received 3.792 billion KRW; Lee Jung-bae, Head of the Memory Business Unit in the DS (Device Solutions) Division, received 2.717 billion KRW; and Kyung Kye-hyun, Head and CEO of the DS Division, received 2.43 billion KRW. Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong has not received a salary from Samsung Electronics since 2017.
Chairman Chung received a total of 4 billion KRW from Hyundai Mobis, combining a salary of 2.5 billion KRW and bonuses of 1.5 billion KRW. This is an increase of 375 million KRW compared to the 3.625 billion KRW he received from Hyundai Mobis in 2022. Chairman Chung also holds registered executive positions at Hyundai Motor and Kia, but does not receive compensation from Kia. His total annual salary is expected to be calculated by adding the Hyundai Mobis salary to the amount disclosed in the upcoming Hyundai Motor business report. Former Hyundai Mobis CEO Cho Sung-hwan, who retired last November, received 2.764 billion KRW.
Cho Hyun-joon, Chairman of Hyosung Group, and Cho Hyun-sang, Vice Chairman, who are preparing for 'independent management by brothers,' received 6.8 billion KRW and 5.7 billion KRW respectively from Hyosung last year. Their salaries from Hyosung Advanced Materials and Hyosung TNC, where both brothers serve as inside directors, were not disclosed but are presumed to be below the 500 million KRW disclosure threshold.
Choi Yoon-beom, Chairman of Korea Zinc, who is in conflict with Youngpoong ahead of the shareholders' meeting on the 19th, received 3 billion KRW last year, an increase of over 1 billion KRW from 1.959 billion KRW in 2022. Second-generation founders Choi Chang-geun and Choi Chang-young, honorary chairmen, received 2.4 billion KRW and 2.2 billion KRW respectively.
Choi Yoon-ho, CEO of Samsung SDI, received 2.953 billion KRW in compensation last year. He earned a bonus of 1.5 billion KRW for contributing to business competitiveness by achieving record sales, expanding global bases, and strengthening strategic partnerships and major OEM contracts.
The 'semiconductor downturn' led to an excess profit incentive (OPI) being set at 0%, which also affected Samsung Electronics employees' salaries, including those in the DS Division. The average salary per Samsung Electronics employee last year was 120 million KRW, down 11.1% from 135 million KRW in 2022.
Some companies, such as automakers, saw employee salaries increase. Hyundai Mobis' average salary rose 13.9% from 108 million KRW to 123 million KRW, and Kia's increased 13.4% from 112 million KRW to 127 million KRW. LG Innotek, which operates in automotive electrical and electronic components, also saw a 2.5% increase from 80 million KRW to 82 million KRW.
Employee salaries increased at Samsung C&T (8.8%), Hyundai Glovis (5.4%), Hyosung Heavy Industries (5.4%), Hanjin (3.5%), and LG Innotek (2.5%), while LG Uplus and L&F maintained last year's levels. Salaries decreased at Samsung Electro-Mechanics (-1%), Samsung SDI (-0.9%), and Samsung SDS (-0.8%).
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