The Naver chapter of the Korean Federation of Chemical, Textile and Food Industry Workers' Unions, affiliated with the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, held a "2026 Integrated Bargaining Declaration Ceremony" at Naver's headquarters building 1784 in Bundang-gu, Seongnam, on the 20th and announced five demands for integrated bargaining. Specifically, the union demanded integrated bargaining on: improving company-wide integrated management processes; improving the work environment to boost work engagement; improving systems to enable safe and healthy work; expanding welfare programs for members' growth and development; and establishing integrated labor-management relations as a union covering all of Naver's affiliates.
Integrated bargaining is a method that consolidates discussions on wage agreements, performance bonuses and work systems—previously conducted separately by the unions of the parent company and its affiliates—into a single negotiation. The recently enacted "Yellow Envelope Law" (amendments to Articles 2 and 3 of the Trade Union Act) allows a party to be regarded as an "employer" if it holds a position in which it can substantially and specifically control the working conditions of subcontracted workers, even without directly signing an employment contract.
The Naver union takes the position that there is ample justification for integrated bargaining, given that Naver's headquarters effectively decides affiliate negotiations and working conditions. Han Mi-na, vice chapter head of the Naver union (from NTech Service), pointed out that "the shareholders and board that decide the key working conditions of affiliate corporations are ultimately the parent company, Naver," adding that "under the individual bargaining structure that has continued for the past eight years, the disparity in treatment among affiliates has actually kept widening."
She continued, "In just the past year, 150 negotiations were held across 16 affiliates, and the time spent by labor and management alone reached about 1,000 hours, but the reality is that affiliate management cannot say a word until Naver's headquarters agrees, and only moves once Naver reaches an agreement." She stressed, "Naver, the true employer, must come to the bargaining table directly and end this abnormal structure of waste and discrimination."
The Naver union also urged Naver to step in to resolve the breakdown in wage negotiations at Naver Z, which recently secured the right to industrial action. Naver Z had failed to reach agreement on a wage agreement with management, which proposed freezing salaries, and secured the right to industrial action through Labor Relations Commission mediation and a union member vote. Oh Se-yoon, chapter head of the Naver union, said responsibility lies with Naver as the ultimate controlling company, criticizing that "the management that exercised its authority is not taking responsibility, and is shifting the blame only onto members who had no authority."
The union intends to launch collective action if there is no change in position within the deadline. Oh said, "If there is no responsible response from management by the end of August, we will designate Sept. 9 as 'Z Action Day' and take action," adding, "We will keep all possibilities open, including a strike, and decide the method of action in consultation with union members."
