Hyundai Motor Group headquarters in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on June 25.NEWS1
Hyundai Motor’s union voted to approve the tentative wage agreement, bringing negotiations at Korea’s five major automakers to a close for this year.
The agreement passed with 61.5 percent of union members who voted Monday casting ballots in favor, the union said Tuesday. Of the union’s 39,638 members, 31,166 cast ballots, for a 78.6 percent turnout.
Under the agreement, Hyundai Motor and the union agreed to raise the monthly base pay by 100,000 won ($73), including regular seniority-based increases, and provide a performance bonus equivalent to 400 percent of the monthly base pay plus 12.7 million won. Workers will also receive 15 shares of company stock, 500,000 won in welfare points and an additional 200,000 won in vacation allowances starting in 2027. The union estimates the wage deal's overall value at 40.84 million won per member this year.
The two sides also agreed to hire 500 new technical workers, including production workers, between next year and 2028. They also agreed to extend the retirement age without expanding the wage peak system — which reduces the employees’ pay as they approach retirement, in exchange for continued employment — if relevant laws are revised. The agreement also calls for the company to withdraw all provisional seizures and damages claims it had filed against the union.
This year’s negotiations went through considerable turmoil. Labor and management held their first formal meeting on May 6, and the union launched its first full-scale strike in a decade on Aug. 21.
The two sides reached a tentative agreement on Aug. 25, 111 days after their first meeting. With union members approving the agreement, this year’s wage negotiations have now come to a close.
Hyundai Motor is estimated to have suffered production disruptions affecting 55,200 vehicles during the strike that resulted in an estimated 2.3 trillion won in lost sales, according to industry estimates.
A worker participate in a labor action in front of Hyundai Motor's headquarters in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on Aug. 21.NEWS1
With labor negotiations now concluded, Hyundai Motor is expected to step up efforts to expand sales in the second half of the year. The automaker’s operating profit in the first half fell 25.8 percent on year.
Hyundai Motor is expected to seek a rebound with new models, including its bestselling Tucson SUV and the Genesis GV80 Hybrid.
“Labor and management will devote all our efforts to production in the second half and repay our customers for their support by making products of the highest global quality,” a Hyundai Motor representative said.
Other major automakers have also wrapped up their wage negotiations.
Kia's union formally signed its wage agreement with management at AutoLand Gwangmyeong on Monday after union members approved the tentative deal. Renault Korea’s union approved its tentative wage agreement on Aug. 26, while unions at GM Korea and KG Mobility approved their respective agreements in membership votes in July.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
