90,000 Samsung workers can go on a strike and the phone crisis may deepen

The ongoing situation with the soaring RAM prices could head in a new direction, but it's the wrong one. People are already paying more for phones (the Galaxy S26 and the Galaxy S26 Plus arrived a few weeks ago with a $100 price hike; some OnePlus and Oppo models also cost more since Monday), but this probably won't be the end of it.

Samsung workers might go on a weeks-long strike in South Korea. Hence, the semiconductor industry might face more problems if the Samsung foundry halts production for a period of time.

A list of demands

As Reuters reports, Samsung Electronics' unionised workers are ready to go on strike. The unions ‌voted mere hours ago on authorizing a strike. The reason? There's an ongoing heated dispute about financial bonuses. As a result – and if nothing is agreed upon in the coming weeks – the strike could further disrupt the already troublesome situation. The world's biggest memory chipmaker might have to delay orders.

It seems that the South Korean workers have had it up to here, as a total of 93% (of the 66,019 workers who cast their vote) voted in favor of a strike plan.

The plan is for a big rally to be held on April 23 and if a deal isn't reached until mid-May, the unions will go on strike for 18 days from May 21. The Galaxy Z Fold 8 and the Z Flip 8 (plus the rumored Galaxy Z Wide Fold) are expected to be unveiled at a point in July, so this strike could affect Samsung's Mobile Division plans, too.

So, there's overwhelming support for the strike among the unionized workers, who are about 70% of the total Samsung workforce in South Korea (125,000). Per Reuters, Samsung's laconic statement mentions phrases like "best efforts" and "amicably" on the wage negotiations topic.

The roots of the conflict

The conflict did not appear overnight. Tensions have been building among employees after rival memory maker SK Hynix agreed to compensation reforms with its own union last September. That move reportedly triggered a wave of new members joining Samsung's union, as workers began pushing the company to adopt similar policies.

Union representatives are now urging Samsung Electronics to remove the current cap on bonuses and instead tie the bonus pool directly to operating profit. The company has pushed back on that proposal, arguing that eliminating the cap could make it harder to fund long-term investments and maintain returns for shareholders in the highly cyclical semiconductor industry.

The stakes are particularly high because Samsung produces the vast majority of its memory chips in South Korea. According to data from Counterpoint Research, all of the company's DRAM output and roughly two-thirds of its NAND chips come from domestic facilities, meaning any disruption could ripple across the global supply chain.

Analysts say reaching a compromise may prove difficult. Sohn In-joon from Heungkuk Securities noted that the demand to remove the bonus cap (currently set at 50% of annual salary) remains the biggest obstacle in the negotiations.