Workers at Samsung Electronics, one of the globe’s leading producers of smartphones and high-end semiconductors, have engaged in industrial action for the first time. This marks a significant move in their six-month effort for improved pay.

Son Woo-mok, the leader of the National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU), which represents thousands of workers, indicated that employees collectively took their paid leave on Friday.

“Although it's challenging to provide an exact figure, the noticeable difference in attendance today suggests strong participation,” he mentioned.

Since January, Samsung has been in continuous negotiations with the unions regarding wages. The company's offer stands at a 5.1% salary increase for this year, whereas the union demands an additional day off annually and clearer performance-related bonuses.

On Friday, Samsung asserted its commitment to the negotiations, stating that there had been no disruption in production. The firm’s semiconductors are integral to AI technology, including products from top industry players like Nvidia.

“June 7 saw a lower usage of paid leave compared to June 5 of the previous year, which also fell between a public holiday and a weekend,” the company commented.

Roughly ten employees demonstrated outside Samsung's main office in Seoul, with chants demanding for labor rights and rejecting a 6.5% raise or a 200% bonus.

Samsung Electronics, a key subsidiary of the South Korean conglomerate Samsung Group, is the most prominent of the family-owned chaebols that spearhead the business in South Korea’s robust economy.

In late April, the company reported an almost tenfold increase in first-quarter operating profit, reaching 6.61 trillion won ($4.85bn), driven by strong sales of its Galaxy S24 smartphone and higher semiconductor prices.

TrendForce, a market research firm based in Taiwan, stated that despite the company’s significant share in global high-end chips production, the strike wouldn’t impact production since it involves headquarters staff, not production line workers.

Regardless, the strike has historical significance as Samsung has long resisted unionization and actively engaged in union-busting, noted Vladimir Tikhonov, a Korean studies professor at the University of Oslo.

The collective action exemplifies a growing labor empowerment trend in South Korea.

For nearly five decades, Samsung Electronics hindered union efforts, sometimes employing aggressive methods as it grew into a global electronics powerhouse.

However, in the late 2010s, labor organizers took advantage of the supportive environment under President Moon Jae-in's administration and controversies such as the bribery trial of then-vice-chairman Lee Jae-yong, to establish a union.

Currently, the NSEU boasts about 28,000 members, representing over a fifth of Samsung’s workforce, making it the largest among the company's five unions.

Lee Hyun-kook, the union's vice president, emphasized that the strike aims not to disrupt production but to ensure that Samsung listens to their concerns.

“We want our voices to be heard by Samsung,” he conveyed to AFP.