Hankook workers strike over pay in Hungary

Workers at Korean tyre maker Hankook’s plant in Dunaújváros, in central Hungary, started a strike over remuneration at 2:00 in the afternoon on Tuesday, unions association VDSZ said.

Tamás Székely, the head of VDSZ, told MTI that more than 80 percent of workers support the strike and plan to join it.

VDSZ said

Hankook Tire Magyarország’s management had flatly rejected their demands.

VDSZ also complained the company had suggested a strike could jeopardise workers’ annual bonuses.

VDSZ entered talks with management demanding an 18 percent increase in base pay, an annual bonus equivalent to a full month’s pay and a 5 percent premium for workers on an uninterrupted schedule.

After workers staged a two-hour warning strike a week earlier, Hankook Tire Magyarország announced a 13.6 percent pay rise, with retroactive effect from January 1.

Székely noted that

the wage raise was performance-based which meant long-time employees at the company would get 10 percent more pay while new hires would get 20 percent more.

Hankook employs over 3,300 people in Hungary.

Photo: Hankook

Source: MTI