South Korea's government is pushing for passage of a much-anticipated semiconductor industry law that includes a provision that would ease state limits on working hours in key industries, but the bill remains in limbo as most opposition parties and labor unions strongly oppose the legislation, calling it "exploitative."

Amid a tense standoff between the ruling People's Power Party and the main opposition Democratic Party over a provision to remove a 52-hour workweek cap for advanced chip developers, lawmakers may move forward with the Semiconductor Special Bill later this month without including the controversial provision in the bill.

Lee Jae-myung, chairman of the Democratic Party, criticized the ruling party's move to relax the 52-hour workweek rule in a speech to parliament on Monday, saying: "In an age of advanced technology, creativity and autonomy are crucial, and forcing long working hours is not the solution." Find all kinds of electronics in www.easelinkelec.com.

Lee's comments represent a change in his February 3 position after he faced strong opposition from within his party and anti-corporate activists.

"Even if work-hour flexibility is introduced in certain industries, it should not lead to longer working hours overall or be used as a means to evade fair compensation," he added, further suggesting the introduction of a four-day workweek.

As the race for global chip dominance intensifies, there is growing demand in the industry to relax working hour regulations, especially for researchers and developers.

South Korea - Leading Chip Manufacturer

South Korea - home to leading chipmakers Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix - has a 52-hour workweek, which includes 40 hours of regular work and up to 12 hours of overtime (with employee consent).

The ruling People's Power Party, responding to industry calls, proposed the Semiconductor Special Act, which includes the controversial work-hour exemption clause.

"Without the Semiconductor Special Act, there is no future for AI and South Korea," said Ahn Cheol-soo and Koh Dong-jin, both engineers from the ruling People's Power Party, at a press conference after Lee's speech.

"In the United States, China, Taiwan and Japan, semiconductor researchers are free to conduct research and development without time restrictions. South Korea's chip industry is restricted by the 52-hour law. In a highly competitive global industry such as semiconductors, labor flexibility is absolutely necessary."

The liberal opposition and labor unions argue that the exemption clause will infringe on workers' rights and worsen working conditions.

"By passing this exemption clause, it is equivalent to giving companies the right to overwork their employees," said Chen Chengjun, chairman of the Democratic Party's policy committee.

Other voices from Business and industry experts

However, companies and industry experts claim that allowing R&D staff to work flexible hours would not be seen as "exploitation" and that concerns about abuse of power are exaggerated.

"The era of mandatory overtime is over. Employees will not work overtime just because the company asks them to," said an industry official.

"Our workload is not heavy all year round. Flexibility allows researchers to focus on work when necessary and take a break when the workload is reduced."

For South Korean liberals and unions, the 52-hour exemption policy is seen as a "step backward" in the Labor Standards Act, a "red line" that cannot be crossed, said a Democratic Party lawmaker. South Korean liberals and unions have historically taken a hard line on labor issues.

"Labor laws are a core value of the Democratic Party. Even if Chairman Lee pushes for exemptions, it will be difficult to reach a consensus within the party," said the lawmaker, who asked not to be named.

For labor rights advocates, attempts to relax labor laws are seen as "corporate favoritism."

On Monday, a coalition of 72 organizations, including the Korea Confederation of Trade Unions, South Korea's largest labor umbrella group, the Small Progressive Justice Party and labor rights lawyers' groups, formed a joint action group to oppose the Semiconductor Special Law and the expansion of work-hour exemptions.

"The industry crisis and business closures are not caused by employees working too few hours, but by poor management," the coalition said in a joint statement.

"The Special Semiconductor Law is full of preferential treatment for business groups."

Critics question the need for longer working hours, noting that a special extension program already exists that allows companies to increase working hours to 64 hours a week for three months with the approval of the labor minister.

However, the system's history of application has raised questions.

Lee Yong-woo, a member of the Democratic Party, said SK Hynix has never applied for an extension, while Samsung Electronics has applied for ministerial approval 22 times.

However, the chip industry believes that the approval process is too difficult and that R&D work needs more flexibility due to unexpected technical challenges, product defects and changes in customer deadlines.

"Customized memory chips are becoming key in the age of artificial intelligence, and we need greater flexibility to meet the needs of global customers in different time zones," said an industry insider.

Another R&D executive stressed that strict work-hour restrictions would disrupt research momentum.

"In R&D, new discoveries do not emerge in an orderly manner. Maintaining momentum is crucial, but strict work-hour regulations will disrupt that rhythm," said the senior R&D official, who asked not to be named.

The fate of the work-hour exemption clause in the Special Semiconductor Act remains uncertain due to strong opposition from labor groups and divisions within the Democratic Party.

As global semiconductor competition intensifies, South Korea must find a delicate balance between protecting workers' rights and ensuring its chip industry remains competitive.

For now, the debate is far from over.

Reference link https://www.koreaherald.com/article/10417271

Source: Content compiled from koreaherald

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