South Korea's government is considering an emergency arbitration order to prevent a massive 18-day strike by Samsung Electronics workers. Around 48,000 employees plan to walk out after bonus talks collapsed, threatening the national economy and global memory chip supply.
President Lee Jae Myung warned that a certain union had "crossed the line" and the government would ensure responsible conduct. Emergency arbitration would suspend the strike for 30 days for mediated talks.
Samsung accounts for nearly a quarter of the country's exports. A worst-case strike could shave 0.5 percentage points off economic growth and cause daily losses of 1 trillion won ($665 million). The last such order was in 2005 against Korean Air pilots.
