Hyundai Motor reaches tentative agreement on 2026 wage negotiations, reflecting proposals to raise base pay and other allowances

*This content was translated by AI.

On the 25th, Hyundai Motor's labor and management officially announced that they had dramatically reached a tentative agreement on the 2026 wage negotiations just 111 days after their initial meeting. The agreement was reached during the 16th round of wage talks held in the Donghaeng Room at the Ulsan Plant headquarters, with Mr. Choi Yeong-il (CEO), an executive, and Lee Jong-cheol, head of the union's negotiating team, among other representatives from both sides attending.

This round of negotiations took place amid a serious crisis that began after the union launched a strike in July, causing disruptions to vehicle production, loss of employee wages, and worsening financial difficulties for parts suppliers. However, during this process, labor and management reached a shared understanding that they must conclude negotiations to prevent further damage, ensure the company's survival, promote mutual prosperity with supplier companies, and contribute to regional economic recovery.

As a result, through these negotiations, labor and management agreed to focus on their core roles, including production in the second half of the year and the launch of new models. In particular, they reached an agreement that adopting future technologies such as physical AI and robotics is indispensable. Accordingly, they decided to move away from traditional manufacturing practices, transparently share progress on new businesses and new technologies, enhance responsiveness to change, improve systems, and strengthen productivity and manufacturing competitiveness.

The agreement results are generally viewed as encouraging for both sides. Despite challenging conditions that make new hiring difficult due to planned reconstruction of domestic factories and large-scale workforce reallocation, labor and management agreed to hire 200 technical workers in the second half of 2027, including key positions, and 300 technical workers in 2028 to fulfill their social responsibilities.

Key points of the agreement on wages and performance bonuses include a 100,000 won increase in base pay (including seniority-based raises), a management performance bonus of 400% plus 12.7 million won, 15 shares of stock, and Hashi Points (welfare points) worth 500,000 won. A Hyundai Motor representative expressed sincere apologies for the prolonged negotiations and strike that caused concern, stating that since labor and management reached a tentative agreement out of desperation, they will devote all efforts to second-half production and new model launches to repay stakeholders with mobility products of global top quality.

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*This content was translated by AI.