The labor union of Neople, a subsidiary of NEXON, has begun a legal struggle in protest against the company's performance bonus system. The Neople union has warned of a general strike, stating that despite the company recording an operating profit of 980 billion won last year with the popular game Dungeon & Fighter, the performance bonus was reduced. Members of Neople demand that the rewards from rapid growth be distributed fairly. However, some criticize that the union, already high-paid, is merely trying to protect its interests.
According to the gaming industry on the 12th, the Korea Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) Korean Chemical, Textile & Food Workers' Union (KCTFU) NEXON branch Neople section announced on the 10th that it would refuse overtime work and hold rallies starting at the Jeju headquarters. The union will conduct a legal struggle by holding rallies after all members leave work by 6 p.m., refusing early arrival to work, work beyond 7 p.m., and weekend work. From the 18th, union members at the Seoul branch are also expected to join. According to the union, in a vote on the 28th of last month to secure the right to strike, 93.48% (917 members) of the union members approved the strike.
The union is lamenting the inadequacy of performance bonuses. Neople recorded its highest-ever revenue of 1.3784 trillion won and an operating profit of 982.4 billion won last year, with Dungeon & Fighter Mobile becoming a hit in China. According to Sensor Tower, Dungeon & Fighter Mobile reportedly garnered $1 billion (1.3 trillion won) in revenue within about four months of its release in the Chinese market. Despite these achievements, the union points out that the performance bonus (GI) for developers is only two-thirds of what it used to be. Consequently, they are demanding that the company distribute approximately 39.3 billion won, equivalent to 4% of the operating profit, as profit sharing (PS).
Furthermore, the union believes that the benefits are concentrated only among a few executives and employees. In fact, CEO Myung-jin Yoon, along with Director of Management Support Il-young Jeong and Dungeon & Fighter Development Head Won-man Lee, received 27.5 billion won in salary and stock compensation last year. The amount they received in 2023 was only 2.6 billion won, but it increased tenfold within two years. Meanwhile, the total amount received by all employees except for them was 334.3 billion won last year, which only doubled compared to the total amount of 155 billion won received by all employees in 2023.
The union stated, “We only ask for a ‘structure where compensation varies based on contribution,’ where we receive less when the company's revenue decreases and more when it increases,” emphasizing that they will no longer accept a structure that “erodes our lives to solely benefit the management.”
Industry insiders point out that the current conflict is not just a one-off clash but an extension of structural issues. Last June, the Neople union became the first NEXON affiliate to secure the right to strike and announced a dispute action, but the conflict was temporarily resolved with a tentative agreement after about a month of mediation. However, similar conflicts have re-emerged in less than a year, indicating that the resolution was only temporary. Other grievances include disparities in treatment compared to the parent company NEXON, unclear performance bonus standards, and poor working conditions.
However, some voices criticize this strike. According to the audit report, the average salary per Neople employee was estimated at 218.88 million won last year. This figure comes from dividing the amount spent on employee salaries of 334.4 billion won, excluding management compensation (27.5 billion won), by the total number of employees (1,402). This amount far exceeds SHIFT UP, the leading game corporation in terms of average annual salary last year at 130 million won. It's also five times the average salary of Korean workers, which is 43.3 million won. From the public's perspective, they are already ‘highly paid’ but are demanding higher raises.
Not only Neople but also unions of recent IT corporations are discontented with treatment improvements and are going on strike. The Kakao union entered a partial strike for the first time in seven years after wage and collective agreement negotiations with its major affiliate, Kakao Mobility, completely collapsed. HANCOM union also expressed dissatisfaction with the company's salary negotiation proposal, predicting its first-ever strike since its foundation.
An official in the IT industry noted, “When IT corporations that used to boast good welfare and high salaries are not as proactive in improving treatment as before, conflicts are arising between management and employees,” adding that “with the recent change of administration, the backlash against chronic high-intensity labor and an opaque compensation system is spreading to union solidarity.”