SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Management and union leaders at Samsung Electronics failed to reach a last-minute deal over wages Wednesday, 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 fueled by the global boom in artificial intelligence.After the latest round of talks ended without a breakthrough on Wednesday, union leader Choi Seung-ho told reporters that unionized workers will begin an 18-day strike from Thursday.Both the union and the management held each other responsible for a failure to reach a deal. Choi accused management of refusing to accept a government-mediated proposal whose details he refused to disclose. Management accused the union of calling for excessive compensation packages for workers at loss-making units.
The two sides said they will continue efforts to reach a deal, but it’s unclear if they could sit down for talks again later in the day.
