(LEAD) Samsung Electronics labor, management hold first mediation talks over strike

(ATTN: CHANGES headline, paras 1-6 with updates; ADDS new photo) SEOUL, May 11 (Yonhap) -- Samsung Electronics Co.'s management and labor held their first round of government-led mediation talks Monday, but remained apart over key issues tied to a planned general strike later this month, officials said. The closed-door negotiations began at the National Labor Relations Commission office in Sejong, south of Seoul, at 10 a.m. and continued for more than 11 hours until 9:30 p.m. according to the officials. The two sides will hold the second round of talks Tuesday. The negotiations were mediated by the commission in an effort to narrow differences between the two sides. They failed to reach an agreement during the regular dispute settlement process in March but recently resumed negotiations following mediation efforts by the labor ministry. Samsung's labor union demanded a performance-based bonus equivalent to 15 percent of the operating profit, along with the removal of the payout cap and the institutionalization of the system. The union earlier announced plans to stage a general strike on May 21. The management, however, maintains that it is difficult to accept the demands. The commission is expected to present a mediation proposal during the second round of talks, officials said. An official enters a room where government-led mediation talks between Samsung Electronics Co.'s management and labor take place at the National Labor Relations Commission office in the central city of Sejong on May 11, 2026. (Yonhap) Last month, Samsung Electronics posted an operating profit of 57.23 trillion won (US$38.9 billion) for the first quarter, up from 6.68 trillion won a year earlier, driven by strong demand for high-end memory chips used in artificial intelligence applications. Management and the labor union have been engaged in wage negotiations since December, but talks broke down in March after the two sides failed to narrow differences over performance-based bonuses. The labor dispute at Samsung Electronics, the world's largest memory chip maker and South Korea's most valuable company, has raised concerns that a walkout could disrupt production and upend the semiconductor supply chain as well as hurt the broader economy as a whole. Choi Seung-ho, the chief of Samsung Electronics Co.'s largest labor union, answers reporters' questions ahead of follow-up mediation procedures in the National Labor Relations Commission in the administrative city of Sejong on May 11, 2026. (Yonhap) ejkim@yna.co.kr(END)