SEOUL, May 16 (Reuters) – Samsung Electronics Chairman Jay Y. Lee apologised to customers and the public on Saturday over the company’s wage dispute with its South Korean labour union ahead of a possible strike that could shake the economy.
“I sincerely apologise to customers around the world for causing anxiety and concern due to issues within our company,” Lee said in his first public remarks on the dispute, adding that he also “deeply bows in apology to the public”.
After pay negotiations broke down this week, the labour minister met Samsung Electronics management on Saturday and urged the company to take an active role in resolving the dispute through dialogue.
South Korean government officials, including the prime minister and finance minister, have voiced concerns that a strike at Samsung should be avoided at all costs, warning it could pose significant risks to economic growth, exports and financial markets.
The collapse of the government-mediated negotiations heightened concerns about a strike at the world’s biggest memory chipmaker, whose customers include Nvidia, AMD and Google.
The union said on Friday it remained committed to a planned strike starting next week, even after the company proposed resuming pay talks without conditions.
In 2020, Lee apologized for the behaviour of executives caught sabotaging labour union activities, and vowed to guarantee labour rights at the tech giant. Some of Samsung Group’s former and current executives have been investigated or convicted.
(Reporting by Heekyong Yang; Editing by Tom Hogue and William Mallard)
