SEOUL, Aug 21 — Hyundai Motor's South Korean union staged its first full strike in a decade on Friday after wage talks stalled, as it seeks a higher retirement age and job protections against artificial intelligence (AI) and automation.
Striking workers from Hyundai Motor, affiliate Kia Corp and suppliers held a rally outside Hyundai Motor's headquarters in Seoul, wearing red headbands and chanting demands that included allowing parts suppliers to have direct wage talks with automakers and increasing the retirement age from the current 60.
"The key figures who made Hyundai and Kia the world's strongest company for 35 or 40 years are now being pushed into contract positions," Hyundai union leader Lee Jong-cheol said from a stage at the rally.
About 40,000 Hyundai Motor union members are expected to join the walkout today, as a union official said earlier that around 1,200 to 1,300 union members are set to attend the Seoul rally.
The official added that members of other unions and those affiliated with the umbrella union were also seen joining, bringing expected attendance in the capital to about 3,000.
The one-day strike illustrates growing labour unrest in South Korea following the election of pro-labour liberal President Lee Jae Myung last year.
Yonhap News Agency reported that this follows a series of partial walkouts since late July that have disrupted production of 55,200 vehicles worth over ₩2.3 trillion (RM6.71 billion).
Humanoid robots and AI
The labour action adds to the automaker's challenges, which in July said it expected to miss its global sales target this year amid growing Chinese competition in Europe and falling sales in South Korea.
The union's demand to raise the mandatory retirement age aligns with President Lee's pledge to gradually increase the limit in one of the world's fastest-ageing countries.
The union is also seeking to raise bonuses to 800 per cent of monthly base salary from 750 per cent, and has demanded guarantees to protect jobs as the company adopts AI and automation.
Hyundai, which owns humanoid robot maker Boston Dynamics, has said it plans to deploy humanoid robots at its United States plant in Georgia from 2028, aiming to expand their use across its production sites.
Union officials said AI could threaten not only production jobs but also research and engineering posts at automakers.
"Even if AI is introduced, we are prepared to fight it — and prepared to win. We are concerned about the future generation," Hyundai Motor worker and the Korean Metal Workers Union's vice president Kim Byung-chul told Reuters.
Hyundai Motor union spokesman Kim Jin-wook said the union is open to resuming wage talks, but would discuss further strike plans if the management failed to come up with "forward-looking proposals."
Meanwhile, Hyundai Motor said it is committed to finding solutions through dialogue.
"Strike action can impact our customers, partners and operations. We are at a critical time when both sides must work together to successfully navigate the global transition to future mobility," it said in a statement.
