Hyundai workers in South Korea voted on Wednesday to shut down the company’s factories in the country after the automaker moved to add humanoid robots to production. According to the Financial Times, 87% of the 40,000 unionized employees backed the strike. The union is demanding a bigger role in how Hyundai introduces AI and automation into its plants.
The dispute intensified after Hyundai said it would deploy Atlas, the humanoid robot made by Boston Dynamics, at factories in the United States. One Hyundai worker told the Financial Times, “We are worried about our job security because of the robots.” The worker added that news coverage and videos showing robots becoming more capable are making employees anxious about their future.
The union is also seeking a bonus equal to 30% of Hyundai’s net profit, to be shared among all 73,000 company employees, which it says would amount to about $27,200 per worker. In addition, it wants the retirement age raised from 60 to 65 and is pressing for wage increases.
Hyundai outlined its robot strategy in January at CES in Las Vegas, saying it plans to produce 30,000 Atlas robots and integrate them into its electric vehicle factory in Georgia by 2028. The company said the robots would handle repetitive or highly dangerous tasks that people would rather avoid. The union responded at the time that without an agreement, “not a single robot will be allowed into the workplace.” Hyundai said in response to the latest strike threat that it will do its best to hold a sincere discussion with the union.