Management and Union Hold First Round of 2025 Wage Talks
Technical and Office Workers' Union Proposes 8.25% Increase
Proposal Includes Raising Salary Cap and Expanding Ordinary Wage Scope
"Reasonable Level of Wage Increase Needed"
Management: "Looking Forward to Constructive and Productive Discussions"
The technical and office workers' union at SK Hynix, which achieved record-high results last year, has proposed an 8% wage increase in this year's wage negotiations with management.
According to industry sources on May 30, the technical and office workers' union and management at SK Hynix held the first round of wage negotiations for 2025 at the Icheon campus on May 28.
The union's wage negotiation proposal includes an 8.25% wage increase, raising the salary cap, expanding the scope of ordinary wages to include vehicle maintenance and fuel costs, guaranteeing achievement bonuses of 800% for employees subject to improved performance evaluations, increasing the payout rate for performance sharing (PS) and removing the cap. Since 2021, SK Hynix has allocated 10% of the previous year's operating profit as the source for PS, distributing it based on individual performance and other criteria.
The union explained, "Whereas in the past, wage increases were influenced by external factors, now a reasonable level of wage increase that employees can accept is needed," adding that the wage negotiation proposal was established based on business performance and employee expectations.
Management stated that it will comprehensively consider various data-driven indicators, including internal and external business environments and compensation competitiveness. Regarding improvements to the PS payout criteria, management believes it is important to gather a wide range of employee opinions. They also expressed hope that future wage negotiations will be constructive and productive.
Previously, the final wage increase rate agreed upon by labor and management at SK Hynix last year was 5.7%. Although the union also initially demanded an increase in the 8% range last year, the two sides reached a compromise with a slightly higher increase than in 2022 (5.5%) and 2023 (4.5%). At the time of last year's wage negotiations, SK Hynix was recovering its performance and industry conditions after recording a loss of more than 7 trillion won in 2023.
Last year, SK Hynix achieved a record-high operating profit of 23.4673 trillion won, driven by the success of high-bandwidth memory (HBM). As a result, the industry's attention is focused on the outcome of this year's wage negotiations. Following its record performance, SK Hynix awarded employees a total bonus of 1,500%?including 1,000% PS and a 500% special performance bonus?along with 30 shares of company stock as an incentive at the beginning of the year.
At SK Hynix, which operates under a multiple union system, the technical and office workers' union under the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions and the full-time workers' unions at the Icheon and Cheongju plants affiliated with the Federation of Korean Trade Unions each conduct separate wage negotiations.
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