On 11 December 2017, Hyundai Motor held a press conference to announce that “The first and second tier contractors of Hyundai Motor are desperately asking the Hyundai union to cease its strikes and conclude a collective agreement.”
A Subcontractors Committee was established in 2001, and was a unification of the respective committees for Hyundai’s subcontractors and Kia Motors’ subcontractors, and now represents 330 auto parts makers nationwide.
A spokesperson from the committee stated that “Lost production due to union strikes is putting the business of contractors at risk, and even threatening their survival. The impact on contractors from these strikes is beyond explanation.” Two to three hours of strikes disrupt the entire production process for contractors.
According to the committee spokesperson, “Employees at the contracted suppliers are also auto manufacturers, even though they work at different places than Hyundai [workers]. They are working under worse conditions in terms of wages, welfare, and other things. Please consider these subcontracted workers.”
The committee asked the Hyundai union to end their strike and conclude a collective agreement as soon as possible in consideration of mutual benefit, to allow production to restart soon.