Trade, Energy and Resources Minister Kim Jung-kwan speaks to reporters at Incheon International Airport upon returning from a trip to the US on May 10, 2026. (Yonhap)
South Korea’s industry minister said Thursday that the government will have no choice but to step in and suspend a strike by unionized workers at Samsung Electronics if they walk off the job as planned on May 21, the first time the government has mentioned the measure to avoid a strike.The National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) the same day asked that labor and management resume mediation Saturday. The moves suggest that the government is pressuring the Samsung union to return to the negotiating table in signaling a firm response to the proposed strike.“A strike [by the Samsung Electronics union] must be avoided at all costs,” Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Kim Jung-kwan wrote on social media on Thursday. “As minister of trade, industry and energy, I believe that emergency arbitration is inevitable if a strike occurs.”Emergency arbitration, also known as emergency adjustment, allows the government to suspend industrial action for 30 days if deemed necessary to protect the economy and the public. The minister also criticized the union’s refusal to negotiate. “The NLRC requested the resumption of dialogue and management accepted, but the union said there is no reason for further talks unless management changes its position,” he wrote. “A strike will cause irreversible economic damage. I urge the prompt resumption of dialogue,” he went on.
