Samsung faces major strike after pay talks with union falls apart

Key points

• Management and union leaders at Samsung Electronics failed to reach a last-minute deal over wages on Wednesday (May 20, 2026), raising prospects for a strike at the South Korean electronics giant that could rattle global semiconductor supplies and the country’s trade-dependent economy.
• Government officials have threatened to invoke rarely used emergency powers to force a settlement at Samsung, where the union, which represents about 74,000 workers, says the company has failed to offer adequate compensation despite its soaring profits fuelled by the global boom in artificial intelligence.
• After the latest round of talks ended without a breakthrough on Wednesday (May 20, 2026), union leader Choi Seung-ho told reporters that unionised workers will begin an 18-day strike from Thursday (May 21, 2026).
• Both the union and the management held each other responsible for a failure to reach a deal.
• Mr.