Including lump sum payment, welfare points, and performance bonuses, the average payment effect is 41.36 million won per union member.
The company said, “This is an opportunity to lay the foundation for stable wage increases and revise the collective agreement after the merger.”
(Ulsan = Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Geun-ju = This year's wage and collective agreement (collective agreement) negotiations between HD Hyundai Heavy Industries' labor and management were concluded after about five months.
The HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Labor Union (Hyundai Heavy Industries branch of the Metal Workers' Union) announced on the 27th that as a result of the vote of all union members (8,193 people) on the second provisional agreement on collective wage, 4,253 (55.06%) of the 7,724 participating union members (94.28% voting rate) agreed and passed it.
This tentative agreement included an increase in monthly basic salary of 120,000 won (including 55,000 won for salary increase), payment of 11.5 million won + 200% of lump sums such as encouragement, payment of 300,000 won in welfare points, and payment of performance bonuses.
The labor and management estimated that adding them all together would have the effect of paying union members an average of 41.36 million won.
In this year's negotiations, the confusion between labor and management that had arisen due to differences in employment rules and collective agreement contents after the merger of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and HD Hyundai Mipo was resolved.
While unifying the standards of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, overall adjustments were made to adjust welfare benefits, such as vacation time, and working conditions to those that are more advantageous to union members between HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and HD Hyundai Mipo.
The provisional agreement also includes calculation of severance pay based on the three consecutive months desired by union members out of the four months immediately preceding the date of occurrence of the cause, conclusion of a special agreement on industrial transition to respond to automation and digitalization in the shipbuilding industry, explanation by the company in advance when issues affecting employment occur, and discussion of employment security measures at the joint labor-management council.
With today's vote, labor and management completely concluded negotiations 147 days after the meeting on June 2.
In this year's negotiations, labor and management agreed to a wage increase to coincide with the shipbuilding industry's boom, but differed over the method and size of the increase.
The union demanded an increase in fixed pay, such as base pay and bonuses, and the company engaged in a tug-of-war by suggesting compensation through an increase in variable pay, such as encouragement pay.
During this process, the union held partial strikes 11 times.
When the first provisional agreement prepared on September 30 was rejected in a vote by union members, union branch leader Kim Dong-ha climbed onto a crane at the Ulsan Shipyard on the 18th of this month and staged a sit-in protest for five days at a height of about 25 meters.
Kim Tae-am, chairman of the union's Mipo Committee, was also taken to the hospital after fasting for two weeks.
Accordingly, labor and management reached a second tentative agreement on the 23rd of this month to expand the fixity of wage increases by increasing the rate of salary increases compared to the first, and added a lump sum of 700,000 won, which was ultimately selected by union members' vote.
An official from HD Hyundai Heavy Industries said, “It was a meaningful opportunity to solidify the basis for stable wage increases and compensation based on performance, and to revise the collective agreement after the merger.” He added, “We will continue to listen more closely to voices from the field and create a vibrant and harmonious organizational culture.”
