Chip-py Times Call for Strike-y Measures
On April 23, 2026; a union-led protest of approximately 40,000 Samsung Electronics workers took place in Pyeongtaek, South Korea. Despite Samsung’s skill at dealing with unions, this was not the first time it saw its working unite; and the last time was in 2024. Workers threatened the company with going on an 18-day strike starting from May 21st, which is a strong enough threat considering their demand. The workers in Samsung’s chip division stated their complaints regarding the pay gap between them and the rival company SY Hynix. A Samsung official spoke on the matter, stating that even a single strike would be extremely efficient and it would take them years to recover.
With the matter in in hands, I would like to draw attention to two things. First of them is the fact that this issue is occurring in one of the most contemporary sectors and in one of the biggest companies in the world.
If one sees chip production – and I have to add that I am extremely ignorant on the technology behind it – as the future of the world it is the most natural to expect the industry to grow. And one can also see this as an opportunity for the workers – especially blue-collar workers – of that industry. However, that thought can be answered through a philosopher’s words from 1848. Referring to Karl Marx, capitalism always finds ways to grow different industries, branches of economy; and through that process many other will be doomed to die out. During this continuous birth and death; one thing will not change. The workers will have an increase in their wage however the capitalist class will always earn more, while the gap between their riches will exponentially increase. Even for the single example in our hands, it is clear that this theory holds.
Secondarily, this event shows how important worker unions are. With organized movement, even with the scare of a strike; it shows how vulnerable even the huge companies are. If an 18-day strike can do inevitable and unbeatable damage, imagine what further interventions from the workers’ part can be capable of!
The deals and negotiations are just numbers in this case, and this is not a news agency. In Bulletin! I have dealt with protests of all kinds until now, and this one is one of them. No matter how one can passionately refute it, the silver lining is that protests work. They work, one way or another and South Korean workers are an example of it, or they hopefully will be.
Last thing that can be added is the content of this issue. Mostly since 2022, the world has gotten into a craze of artificial intelligence, and it is yet to set its “devil” – if one should exaggerate. Unfortunately for the world, I do hope that I am exaggerating, and we do not pay for the rapid production of this “huge development”.