Parties agree to twice-weekly bargaining sessions starting June 9; both sides pledge to pursue shared goals on management stability and employment
![HD Hyundai Heavy Industries management and union representatives pose for a photo at the company's Ulsan headquarters Monday after holding their 2026 collective bargaining kickoff meeting. President Keum Seok-ho (second from left) and Kim Dong-ha (third from left), head of the Hyundai Heavy Industries branch of the Korean Metal Workers' Union, attended along with other bargaining committee members. [HD Hyundai Heavy]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/06/02/news-p.v1.20260602.b44c3ac9634c421080a977e4250cfcef_P1.jpg)
HD Hyundai Heavy Industries launched formal wage and collective bargaining talks Monday, holding a kickoff meeting at its Ulsan headquarters to open the 2026 negotiation cycle.
President Keum Seok-ho, Korean Metal Workers' Union Vice Chairman Kim Gyu-jin, and Hyundai Heavy Industries branch chief Kim Dong-ha attended the session alongside bargaining committee members from both sides. The two parties introduced their negotiating teams, exchanged views on the schedule and ground rules, and agreed to hold two bargaining sessions per week beginning with a first round on June 9.
"Cooperation between the company and the union is essential to resolving pressing issues amid a changing business environment at home and abroad," Keum said. "Starting with today's meeting, I hope labor and management can build shared goals through constructive dialogue."
Kim Dong-ha said he hoped the talks would focus on securing jobs on the shop floor and ensuring employment stability, rather than devolving into unproductive confrontation.
The union had earlier submitted its demands to the company on May 20, calling for a base pay increase of 149,600 won (about $99) excluding seniority increments, a 100 percent raise in bonuses, and a fair profit-sharing arrangement allocating at least 30 percent of operating profit to workers.
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