Hyundai Motor union touts W40m raise effect, calls tentative deal 'fair distribution'

The Hyundai Motor union has declared the tentative wage and collective bargaining agreement for this year a deal worth "more than 40 million won ($28,900) in raise effect," and has begun rallying members to support it. After 60 hours of strikes, labor and management reached the tentative agreement, with a member ratification vote set for Monday serving as the final hurdle to a full settlement.

The Korean Metal Workers' Union's Hyundai Motor chapter said Tuesday it had "finally achieved a forward-looking agreement, reaching a tentative settlement for the 2026 collective bargaining round."

The union estimated the total value of the tentative package at 34.8 million won, combining a 400% performance bonus, a 12.7 million won lump-sum payment, 15 shares of company stock and 500,000 won in welfare points.

Adding the roughly 6 million won in annualized wage gains generated by a 100,000-won base pay increase brings the total raise effect to approximately 40.84 million won, the union said. It calculated the wage effect of a 10,000-won base pay increase at 600,000 won, and each 100% of the performance bonus at 3.83 million won.

The wage portion of the tentative agreement includes a 100,000-won increase in base pay. The performance bonus will be paid at 400% plus a 12.7 million won lump sum, and the package also includes 15 shares of company stock and 500,000 Hash Points — the company's in-house welfare points.

The payment schedule was also spelled out. Upon ratification, workers will immediately receive a 300% performance bonus and 8.7 million won. In late November, they will receive an additional 4 million won, 15 shares of stock and 500,000 Hash Points. The remaining 100% of the performance bonus will be paid at the end of December.

The union described the agreement as achieving "fair distribution of a raise effect exceeding 40 million won." Management had sought to limit wage increases, citing a 19.5 percent drop in the previous year's earnings, but the union secured a performance payout in the 40 million won range regardless.

The tentative deal falls short of the union's original demands, however. The union had sought a 149,600-won base pay increase, a performance bonus equivalent to 30 percent of the previous year's net profit, a 50 percent raise in fixed bonuses and an extension of the retirement age. Under the tentative agreement, the base pay increase was scaled back to 100,000 won, and discussions on raising fixed bonuses and other allowances were deferred to the 2027 bargaining round.

Some progress was also made on separate demands. Labor and management agreed to hire 500 new workers — 200 in the second half of 2027 and 300 in 2028. The 2027 intake will include positions in core technology roles.

On retirement age extension, the two sides agreed to apply any legally mandated extension immediately upon enactment, and to implement a phased extension without expanding the existing wage-peak system. The union said the agreement "preemptively blocked any attempt to worsen conditions by expanding the wage-peak system in connection with retirement age extension."

The summer vacation allowance will rise by 200,000 won, from 800,000 won to 1 million won, starting in 2027. On the reinstatement of dismissed workers, the two sides agreed to pursue forward-looking discussions based on a shift in management's position.

Outstanding damage claims and asset freezes were also resolved. Labor and management agreed to fully withdraw all 10 pending cases totaling 21.37 billion won in damage suits and provisional seizures, and not to extend their statutes of limitations.

The tentative agreement will be put to a full membership ratification vote Monday. The Hyundai Motor chapter plans to hold a briefing for union delegates Tuesday morning, followed by shift-by-shift member briefings in the afternoon to explain the key terms of the deal.

This year's negotiations had shown signs of dragging on as strike action escalated. The union staged partial strikes and refused overtime work from July onward, and in August carried out its first full-day strike in a decade. Total strike hours during this year's bargaining process reached 60.