기사 메일전송
Ahead of resuming negotiations... Samsung Electronics union members file for an injunction to halt negotiations
  • Yonhap News
  • May 18, 2026 at 6:00 AM
기사수정
  • Law Firm Nova, Legal Representation for DX Employees... "Violation of Covenants and Lack of Procedural Legitimacy"


Employees of Samsung Electronics' Device Experience (DX) division have filed an injunction seeking to halt negotiations, ahead of a post-mediation meeting with the Central Labor Relations Commission (CLRC) between the company and its largest union, the Trans-Company Labor Union Samsung Electronics Branch (hereafter referred to as the Trans-Company Union).


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According to legal and industry sources on this day, Nova Law Firm (lead attorney Lee Don-ho) announced that on the 15th, they filed an injunction for "Suspension of 2026 Wage and Collective Bargaining" with the Suwon District Court on behalf of the "Samsung Electronics Employee Rights Restoration Legal Response Alliance," comprised of five union members from Samsung Electronics' DX division, against the Trans-Company Union.


This injunction was initiated by DX division union members who are expressing dissatisfaction with being sidelined in labor negotiations. They are demanding a halt to negotiations by questioning the decision-making process of the Trans-Company Union, which is currently centered around the Device Solutions (DS) division and holds negotiation rights.


The injunction states that the Trans-Company Union's use of a one-week "Naver Form Survey" conducted from November 7-13 last year, in lieu of a general meeting resolution, directly violates the union's bylaws.


Article 51 of the Trans-Company Union's bylaws stipulates that collective bargaining demands must be finalized at a general meeting, and Article 23, Paragraph 4, mandates a 7-day prior notice. Article 16, Paragraph 1, Subparagraph 3 of the Trade Union Act also designates collective agreement matters as subjects for general meeting resolutions.


Nova Law Firm pointed out that, contrary to the bylaws, the notice for the general meeting was given only one day in advance, that the executive committee coordinated 20 agenda items internally without gathering full opinions due to time constraints, and that the representative council has not been convened even once in the three years since its establishment.


Furthermore, they argued that the unique labor condition improvement demands of the DX division were excluded from the options because the three-step process stipulated in the Memorandum of Understanding for the Joint Negotiation Group (each union's own resolution → integration and coordination → working-level consultations) was entirely omitted.


As a result, it was mentioned that the majority union status is being shaken, with over 6,000 DX division members out of a total of 14,553 in the Trans-Company Union having withdrawn as of the end of March.


Attorney Lee emphasized the urgency of the injunction being granted, stating, "Once a collective agreement is signed, the terms and conditions of employment for all approximately 130,000 Samsung Electronics employees will be finalized due to the general binding effect, making it difficult to contest it later."


He added, "We also plan to pursue parallel lawsuits, including a main lawsuit contesting the validity of the injunction to suspend collective bargaining and the resolution to finalize negotiation demands, as well as a provisional injunction to suspend the effect of the resolution."


Meanwhile, the Trans-Company Union now faces two legal risks alongside the injunction filed by the company seeking to prohibit illegal industrial action, with a general strike scheduled for the 21st. It is anticipated that the court's decision on the injunction to prohibit illegal industrial action will be made before the general strike.


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