Ssangyong Motor's union to send delegation to China

2023-03-23 00:23:36      点击：300

SEOUL, Jul 22, 2008 (AsiaPulse via COMTEX) -- The labor union of Ssangyong Motor Co. said Tuesday it will send a delegation this week to the headquarters of Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. to protest what it called the Chinese parent's mismanagement and demand a pay increase.
 
Union leaders have also been upset as a sudden drop in vehicle sales of Ssangyong, 51 per cent owned by SAIC, could put Ssangyong into a liquidity crisis unless the Chinese parent injects fresh capital into the South Korean unit.

Hit by higher fuel prices and the stagnant South Korean economy, Ssangyong saw its domestic sales plunge 67 per cent on-year to 1,902 units last month.

Ssangyong, the smallest automaker in South Korea, sold 26 per cent fewer vehicles in the first six months of this year as consumers particularly shun its gas-guzzling sport-utility vehicles. Ssangyong's vehicle lineup is dominated by SUVs and luxury sedans.

"The delegation, led by Ssangyong's union chief Chung Il-kwon, will meet SAIC vice chairman Chen Hong in China on Wednesday," a union official said by telephone, declining to give details.

On Monday, the union said it has agreed with management on a shutdown of the company's only plant for three weeks from July 31 to cut back production amid sluggish demand.

The decision underlined a dilemma facing Ssangyong, which has no small cars in an era of expensive gas prices, analysts say.

Officials at Ssangyong's public relations team weren't immediately available for comment.

Since SAIC bought the controlling stake in Ssangyong for US$500 million in 2002, Ssangyong's unionists have accused the Chinese parent of trying to copy technology without spending for the development of new models.

Early this year, prosecutors raided Ssangyong's plant as part of their investigation into allegations that it illegally leaked hybrid technology to SAIC.