Samsung Electronics Union Loses Majority Status After Membership Drops to 58,270

Samsung cross-enterprise union membership falls to about 58,000

Below the roughly 64,500 needed to retain majority status

The Samsung Electronics chapter of the Samsung Group cross-enterprise labor union has lost its majority-union status, a first for a union at the company after it had become the first in Samsung Electronics history to secure that position. The loss followed a large-scale exodus of members from non-semiconductor divisions after the 2026 wage and collective bargaining agreement was finalized.

As of 3 p.m. on June 4, the union had 58,270 members, according to labor industry officials. It needed about 64,500 members to maintain majority status, leaving it short by 6,230. The union had 65,290 members as of 10 a.m. on June 3, but later fell below the threshold.

The cross-enterprise union was the first organization to win majority-union status in Samsung Electronics' history. Membership has been declining since reaching about 76,000 on April 7. After first topping 70,000 in late March, the union briefly expanded before sentiment shifted sharply. As of June 4, membership was down by about 17,000 from its peak.

The membership decline gathered pace during the process of handling the tentative wage agreement. Membership fell to 73,300 on May 8 and continued to slide. Departures accelerated after it emerged on May 18 that the union leadership had revised its rules to pay monthly position allowances amounting to several million won.

Membership dropped to 69,935 on May 27, pushing the union below 70,000. That was the day voting ended on the tentative wage deal put forward by the cross-enterprise union and the National Samsung Electronics Labor Union, and the wage agreement was finalized.

A key driver of the departures was the gap in performance bonuses across business divisions. Labor and management had earlier agreed to create a special management performance bonus for the Device Solutions, or DS, division, which oversees the semiconductor business. Under the agreement, the memory business was to receive an average of about 600 million won ($435,000) per employee, while the Device eXperience, or DX, division, which handles non-semiconductor operations, was to receive about 6 million won ($4,350).

The gap was also reflected in the vote on the tentative agreement. At the cross-enterprise union, which is centered on the DS division, 80.6% voted in favor. At the National Samsung Electronics Labor Union, support was just 21.1%. At Samsung Electronics Labor Union Donghaeng, which held its own vote because it had no voting rights on the tentative agreement, 99.5% voted against it.

The wage agreement was nonetheless finalized. The pace of departures from the cross-enterprise union then accelerated.

Other unions, by contrast, have been growing quickly. Membership at the National Samsung Electronics Labor Union rose from about 16,000 on May 20 to 20,968 as of 9 a.m. on June 4. Donghaeng also had about 2,600 members at that time, but had grown to 21,390 as of June 4.

Kim Dae-young, Hankyung.com reporter kdy@hankyung.com