GM Korea Reaches Agreement With Workers’ Union

GM announced that it has just reached an agreement with the South Korean workers’ union to optimize vehicle production at its local plants, an important step that will allow it to stabilize its business in the Asian country. The Korean automaker and its employees have agreed to a labor adjustment involving changes in production management and the relocation of workers between its own facilities.

Chevy Trailblazer on the line at GM’s Bupyeong Plant 1

General Motors’ South Korean subsidiary signed the new agreement with its workforce earlier this week, with which it hopes to accelerate the recovery process of its business and continue developing the company’s future growth strategy in South Korea. According to the manufacturer, the agreement with the union focuses on job stability and a large-scale workforce transition between plants to improve production management.

“The agreement made with the labor union through the Job Security Committee on the large-scale workforce transition is a highly meaningful achievement for our business turnaround process,” said GM Korea in a statement. “The company will be able to be competitive by having a stabilized employment structure as well as optimized production at its sites through this production management adjustment and large-scale relocation of personnel.”

GM Bupyeong plant

After three weeks of discussions, GM Korea and its local union have agreed on a labor adjustment plan that seeks to optimize vehicle production at the GM Bupyeong and GM Changwon complexes. Both facilities will undergo major changes with the cessation of production of the Chevy Trax and Malibu at Plant 2 in Bupyeong, scheduled for November, and the expected start of production of an upcoming Chevrolet global crossover in Changwon, which will likely be the next-generation Chevy Trax.

The new agreement covers the following three points: 1) change the current two-shift system to a regular day shift at Bupyeong Plant 2 from May 1^st to better respond to market demand; 2) relocating approximately 1,200 affected employees between Bupyeong Plant 1 and Changwon Plant, where production is expected to increase, during the year; and 3) providing residential move-in support for relocated employees.

GM Changwon plant

With these adjustments, GM Korea is optimistic about its plans to establish a production cadence of 500,000 vehicles per year in the country based on global products. The plan includes ramping up production of the Chevy Trailblazer and Buick Encore GX at Bupyeong Plant 1 this year and adding a next-generation vehicle to be built at the Changwon plant starting next year.

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