The labor union of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HD HHI) has urged the company to enhance its support for retirees and long-term employees, highlighting disparities compared to HD Hyundai Mipo Dockyard (HD HMD) and HD Hyundai Samho. Presently, both HD HHI and HD HMD offer retirees 1 million won (approximately $719.06) for travel expenses and four days of vacation. Additionally, HD HMD provides 14 days of adjustment leave, a benefit that the HD HHI union is advocating to adopt.

HD HHI customarily grants retirees five days of vacation at the end of each year, but the union claims that this benefit is not included in the collective bargaining agreement, making it less favorable compared to the provisions at HD HMD.

On June. 17., representatives from the labor unions of the three shipbuilding companies under HD Hyundai delivered this year's wage and collective bargaining demands to the group's officials in front of the Hyundai Global R&D Center in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province/Courtesy of the Hyundai Heavy Industries Union

The union is also advocating for enhancements to the rewards offered to employees with more than 10 years of service, which have remained unchanged for 16 years. Previously, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HD HHI) provided long-term employees with 37.5 grams of gold along with an incentive payment. However, in 2008, the company transitioned to providing only the incentive payment. The union pointed out that the value of the gold given to a 20-year employee at that time would now be approximately 4 million won (about $2,878), significantly more than double the current 2 million won incentive payment provided by the company.

The union asserts that the incentive payment size is also smaller than that provided by HD Hyundai Samho. “We are receiving less favorable treatment than employees at HD Hyundai Samho, the youngest among the affiliates,” stated the union. “We urge the company to recognize that our members constitute the driving force behind its evolution into a global enterprise and to compensate them accordingly.”

Although the HD HHI union is not formally addressing these issues in this year’s wage and collective bargaining negotiations, it may raise them in conjunction with discussions about extending the retirement age, another critical issue this year. With HD HHI experiencing a growing number of retirees annually, expanding retiree benefits could potentially strain the company financially.