About 2,600 workers have already left Homeplus this year as the hypermarket chain undergoes court receivership proceedings, with thousands more jobs at risk as 37 stores move toward permanent closure.
According to the Mart Industry Labor Union under the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, Homeplus had 17,986 employees at the end of last year. By the end of April, that number had fallen to 15,398 — a loss of 2,588 workers in just the first four months of this year.
Homeplus announced on May 8 that it would suspend operations at 37 of its 104 hypermarket stores nationwide, with those locations set to close permanently this month. Around 3,500 employees at the affected stores now face unemployment.
There are also concerns that additional stores among the 67 still in operation could be forced to shut if creditors delay financial support. Homeplus paid workers only 25 percent of their April salaries due to a cash shortage and has yet to pay May wages.
The financial strain has also disrupted supply chains, with shelves at multiple stores going bare as suppliers hold back deliveries.
The court extended the deadline for approving a rehabilitation plan by two months, to July 3. If the court halts the receivership process, Homeplus would proceed to liquidation.
Union opposition is expected to intensify as the situation worsens. The Homeplus chapter of the Mart Industry Labor Union launched a hunger strike on May 14, demanding the company be restored to normal operations.
"There is deep anxiety among employees that the company may decide to close even more stores," a union official said. "More and more workers are thinking there is no hope left and are quitting to find other jobs just to make ends meet."
dlcw@heraldcorp.com
