South Korea warns Samsung strike could cost $667 million a day

South Korea will pursue all options, including emergency arbitration, to prevent a labour strike at Samsung Electronics and minimize potential economic damage, Prime Minister Kim Min-seok said on Sunday. The world's largest memory chip maker and its South Korean labour union are scheduled to resume pay talks on Monday with a government mediator, a move that could ease concerns over a potentially disruptive work stoppage at the tech giant that accounts for nearly a quarter of the country's exports. Kim warned that just one day of suspension at Samsung's semiconductor factory could incur direct losses of up to 1 trillion won (US$667.68 million). He emphasized that a temporary pause on semiconductor manufacturing lines could lead to months of inactivity, with concerns that economic damage could balloon to as much as 100 trillion won if materials had to be disposed of due to a strike. Samsung accounts for 22.8 percent of South Korea's exports and 26 percent of the domestic stock market, employing more than 120,000 people and working with 1,700 suppliers. An emergency arbitration order, which can be invoked by the labour minister if the country deems a dispute likely to harm the economy or daily life, immediately prohibits industrial action for 30 days while the National Labour Relations Commission conducts mediation and arbitration. The measure has rarely been invoked and would represent an extraordinary step for the union-friendly administration. The union indicated it would negotiate in good faith to reach an agreement with management, though one report noted the union stated it would not give in to pressure on arbitration and would not accept a less favorable pay proposal.