Samsung and union enter new round of talks ahead of planned strike

A full-scale strike at Samsung could halt operations at its Giheung and Pyeongtaek fabs, disrupting deliveries of HBM3E and 3nm GAA chips—critical for AI workloads. TSMC and SK Hynix stand ready to capture overflow demand, especially as hyperscalers prioritize supply certainty over loyalty. Government mediation underscores Seoul’s strategic dependence on Samsung, which accounts for over 20% of national exports, but this political entanglement inflates compliance overhead and reveals systemic fragility in Korea’s chip supply chain. Recalling the 2016 Note7 debacle, Samsung’s vertically integrated model remains vulnerable to operational shocks. Over the next 18 months, global clients will likely accelerate dual-sourcing strategies, while institutionalized labor power may permanently elevate Korea’s semiconductor labor costs, eroding its competitive edge in an increasingly price-sensitive foundry and memory market.