Samsung has probably become the first company in South Korea to get approval from the government for a 64-hour workweek. As per the country’s labour laws, companies cannot make their employees work for over 52 hours a week.
However, Samsung’s large-scale integration or LSI division found that it was unable to meet deadlines or fulfil production targets in that time. Many other companies also objected to the rule. Samsung has gone ahead and obtained a consent from the local branch of the Ministry of Employment and Labour to allow its employees to work 64 hours a week instead of 52.
Labour laws were recently revised to facilitate the production of Korean semiconductors, which bring in significant revenue.
Now, Samsung’s chip division will see workers putting in up to 64 hours a week in the first three months and then up to 60 hours a week for the next three.
It is not known how much or whether workers will be paid for the extra hours.
It is reported that other companies manufacturing semiconductors are also seeking extension of working hours.
To add to the challenges, NVIDIA has already overtaken Samsung in terms of semiconductor revenue, for the very first time. In fact, it has overtaken Samsung’s 2024 semiconductor revenue by at least $10 billion. With NVIDIA’s AI accelerators selling like hot cakes, the company’s stock is rising along with its revenue.
