Seoul: Kakao Corp.'s labor union announced on Monday that it will initiate a partial walkout next week after a second round of government-mediated wage discussions collapsed last month. Union members plan to conduct a four-hour strike on June 10, with a march near the company's headquarters in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province, south of Seoul.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the union issued an official statement demanding the company ensure employment stability for its workers and revamp its compensation structure, which it argues allows executives to "monopolize excessive rewards." The union also indicated that the scale of the strike could be expanded depending on the results of future negotiations.
This development arises amid a broader labor dispute over performance-based pay and profit sharing, an issue highlighted by a recent standoff at Samsung Electronics Co. On May 27, Kakao's labor and management failed to reach a consensus during the second round of wage talks mediated by the government, with both parties unable to reconcile differences over the performance-based incentive structure.
Unionized workers across Kakao's five units, including its headquarters, Kakao Pay Corp., and Kakao Enterprise, had previously voted in favor of the walkout. In response, Kakao's management has stated it will undertake all necessary measures to maintain stable service operations, particularly for its widely used messenger app, KakaoTalk.