Samsung's unionised workers in South Korea approve pay deal

SEOUL, May 27 (Reuters) - ‌Samsung Electronics' ​unionised ​workers in South Korea voted to approve a tentative wage deal, the ‌union said on Wednesday, averting a strike ⁠that threatened to rattle global chip supplies and ‌damage the South Korean ‌economy.

Nearly 74% of the 62,616 workers who cast ballots backed the deal, the union ​said.

The approval came after a bitter five-month dispute over performance bonuses tied to the ⁠company's booming AI chip business that has created a deep ​division among workers at the tech conglomerate.

Labour and management had initially reached a ​tentative agreement last Wednesday ‌following last-minute mediation by South Korea's Labour Minister, just hours before unionised ⁠workers were scheduled to walk off the job.

But a minority union representing the giant's consumer electronics ⁠workers said on Tuesday it has asked a South ​Korean court to block a vote on a pay deal that primarily benefits their colleagues in the ‌company's chip divisions.

Under the terms of the ratified agreement, Samsung will implement ‌a new 10-year special performance bonus system ⁠for its semiconductor division, ‌alongside an ​average 6.2% wage hike.

(Reporting by Hyunjoo Jin and Heejin Kim Editing by Ed ‌Davies)

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