Micron workers increasingly support strike over bonus pay — labor union wants profit-sharing scheme, as employees at Samsung, SK hynix enjoy bonuses worth hundreds of thousands of dollars

Micron Taiwan workers are increasingly backing a potential strike over their bonus pay structure. A recent survey indicates that 80% of the involved employees support this labor action. The union representing these workers is demanding a shift from the current bonus system to a profit-sharing model, much like the one enjoyed by employees at Samsung and SK hynix.

These tech giants have been thriving due to the memory chip shortage driven by artificial intelligence. Micron, along with Samsung and SK hynix, has been generating substantial revenue, and its workers want to share in the profits. Dan Nystedt, a spokesperson, noted that Samsung provides 10.5% of profits as bonuses, while SK hynix offers 10%.

Formal mediation talks are set to commence by mid-September, a prerequisite for an official strike vote according to Taiwan law. Support for a strike at Micron Taiwan over bonus pay has reached an 80% mark in a preliminary survey, as the company faces challenges similar to those experienced by Samsung in May, when a last-minute agreement prevented a walkout.

This suggests that Micron Taiwan's labor union may be following a similar path, particularly as the company reported a revenue of $41.46 billion and a net income of $28.24 billion in its last earnings call. A significant portion of Micron's revenue comes from its Cloud Memory Business Unit, which supplies high-bandwidth memory (HBM) to data center clients, accounting for over 33% of the total earnings.

It remains uncertain if workers from other regions will be impacted by any agreement reached in Taiwan, but 60% of the company's global production capacity is based on the island, with most HBM production originating from their facilities there. As the two parties begin negotiations in September, the nature of the deal remains unclear.

However, given the lucrative nature of the data center boom and the precedent set by workers at Samsung and SK hynix, both sides are likely to have comparable demands. While it is unclear how substantial the bonuses will be for Micron Taiwan workers, it is expected that management will negotiate to avoid production disruptions, which could result in significant losses for the company.

Nonetheless, this could also create complications for workers in other countries, potentially generating jealousy and resentment among those who would not benefit from the agreement, similar to the situation faced by some Samsung workers after their recent labor deal was finalized.