POSCO union votes down tentative wage deal

Unionized workers at Korean steelmaker POSCO on Saturday voted down a tentative wage agreement reached with management that includes a 2.6 percent increase in base pay, union officials said. The vote showed 51.69 percent of the unionized workers opposed the wage agreement, while 48.31 percent approved it, according to the union. The tentative wage deal includes a 2.6 percent hike in base pay, a one-off payment of 6 million won ($4,500) and improved benefits. The union had initially demanded a 7.1 percent increase in base pay, a performance bonus equivalent to 600 percent of base pay, 50 company shares per worker and a holiday bonus equivalent to 200 percent of base pay. "We will probably need to open renegotiations as there were many opposing votes," a union official said. The union and management reached a tentative wage agreement on Oct. 30 after holding about 30 rounds of talks since June. Unionized POSCO workers staged two rounds of partial strikes in September to demand higher wages and bonuses.