Kia Motors Sohari Plant. / Reporter Beom-Joon Kim [email protected]
Kia Motors’ labor and management have come up with a provisional agreement for wage and collective bargaining in 2020, which covers the freezing of basic wages in 11 years and restoring 25 minutes of overtime work. Although the Maginot line of settlement within this year was barely kept, the labor union went on strike for a total of 14 days, and both labor and management bleed. As a result of the strike, the union only took 1.3 million won more gift certificates per person, but did not receive 1.8 million won worth of employee stock ownership, and lost about 1 million won in wages according to the no-work principle. The company also suffered production losses of about 47,000 units. It is pointed out that the negotiations were all defeated.
The strike resulted in a gift certificate of 1.3 million won
The labor and management of Kia Motors came up with a provisional agreement for a collective bargaining agreement after overnight negotiations in negotiations held the day before on the 22nd. The agreement included a freeze of basic salary (excluding senior salary upgrades), 150% of management performance, 1.2 million won in encouragement to overcome the novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19), and 1.5 million won in traditional market gift certificates. The basic salary, incentives, and encouragement money are the same as the Hyundai Motors labor-management agreement, which had previously concluded the labor union agreement. It has been 11 years since the 2009 financial crisis that Kia Motors has frozen basic pay.
The Kia Motors union held a partial strike for a total of 14 days from last month to this month to bring out this agreement. It went on strike for nine consecutive years, with four hours of early work a day.
What the union won more in return for the strike was 1.3 million won for traditional market gift certificates. Initially, the company’s proposal was 200,000 won for a gift certificate, which was increased to 1.5 million won. Instead, we lost our stock. The company offered employee stock ownership equivalent to the amount of 10 shares of Hyundai Motor on the condition that it does not strike, but the union kicked itself off. Considering Hyundai Motor’s share price as of the day, it was about 1.8 million won. A union member said, “When I compare gift certificates and stocks, I lost about 500,000 won,” he said. “I don’t know why the strike took into account that the monthly wage was reduced by about 1 million won due to the strike.”
The company also suffered great losses. It is known that production disruption due to the union’s four-week partial strike reached 47,000 units. The amount is more than 1 trillion won, similar to Kia Motors’ domestic sales for a month.
10 minutes overtime and 25 minutes of wages
The biggest issue, ’30 minutes overtime restoration’ was agreed to be 25 minutes. Kia Motors eliminated overtime for 30 minutes a day due to rising labor costs following the loss of a lawsuit for ordinary wages in 2017. However, when Hyundai Motor’s labor and management decided to reduce overtime work from 25 minutes to 5 minutes from last year, but to conserve wages in exchange for increasing productivity, the Kia Motors union made the same request. The actual job is to only add 10 minutes and ask for 30 minutes of overtime pay.
Labor and management did 10 more minutes of actual work, but reduced some of the union activities and increased output per hour (UPH), squeezing 15 minutes to make 25 minutes. Accordingly, from next year, the monthly salary will increase by 110,000 won. A union member said, “Hyundai Motors does the same, what is the problem?”
The labor and management agreed to increase the travel subsidies for long-term couples for 20 years from 1.4 million won to 1.6 million won, and to expand the support for college student expenses from three children to all children. The Kia Motors union is expected to hold a vote for or against the provisional agreement on the 29th. If the majority approve, it will be finalized.
Previously, Ssangyong Motor, Hyundai Motor Company, and GM Korea concluded the agreement, leaving only Renault Samsung Motors in the auto industry. Labor-management negotiations with Renault Samsung Motors have been suspended. The union recently said, “If the management does not show a forward-looking appearance, it will hold a general meeting of members to vote for the strike.”
Reporter Kim Il-gyu [email protected]