Court mostly grants Samsung Electronics' injunction request against union strike

A court on Monday largely granted Samsung Electronics' request for an injunction against a general strike threatened by its unionized workers, in a blow to the planned collective action.

The Suwon District Court said staffing and operations must be maintained at normal levels during the strike to prevent potential damage to the company's safety-related and other facilities, and products, just three days before the start of the union's planned 18-day strike.

It also restricted the company's largest union from taking over the company's facilities or disrupting workers from entering them, about a month after Samsung filed the injunction against its two main unions on April 16. "Considering the scale (the company) holds in the global semiconductor supply chain, disruptions to production from facility damage and deterioration or spoilage of raw materials or products could lead to production delays in automobile, home appliance, and information and communication industries," the court said.

It said the two unions must pay 100 million won ($66,500) each per day in the event of any violation of