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| Hyundai Motor's Ioniq 5 assembly line at the company's Ulsan plant. / Courtesy of Hyundai Motor Group |
By Kim Hyun-bin
Hyundai Motor's labor and management have reached an agreement to build a new electric vehicle (EV) production plant here. Once completed, it will become the firm's first newly built domestic factory in 29 years, Korea's largest carmaker said, Tuesday.
The company said it reached the landmark agreement with the union during the 15th round of wage negotiations that were held at its Ulsan plant, Monday. The deal should help improve responses to the fast-changing global car industry, while securing future competitiveness for domestic factories as well as ensuring employment stability.
In order to meet the rapid increase in global EV demand, the company will start construction of an EV-only plant in 2023, while completion is scheduled for 2025.
This will be the first new Hyundai Motor plant to open in Korea in 29 years since the construction of a plant in Asan in 1996. Hyundai Motor Group announced in May that it would invest 63 trillion won domestically by 2025.
In addition, the existing production line, built in the 1960s and 1970s, will be upgraded in stages in order to mass-produce EVs too.
To carry out this domestic investment plan, the company is actively promoting the introduction of cutting-edge production and quality systems to enhance future manufacturing competitiveness and improve the work environment.
"There are internal and external risks, but labor and management have decided to coexist with a focus on the future competitiveness of the domestic factory and job stability. Labor and management will work together to make this possible," a Hyundai Motor official said.
Job security measures, such as transitioning from the internal combustion engine powertrain to EVs and various types of job retraining will be provided.
The union is committed to actively discussing various matters such as the improvement of global production efficiency and quality assurance, vehicle model transfer, personnel conversion and training before mass production.
Labor and management decided to develop and implement training programs including job change training for field production personnel so as to secure future industry-related technologies.
In the case of manufacturing, the quality and R&D sectors will also provide opportunities for job retraining through future technology education development programs.
In addition, labor and management reaffirmed that domestic factories and research institutes will make continuous efforts to build a strong foundation for new businesses, and decided to hold information sessions once a year.
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