San Francisco Frontiers - Hyundai reaches tentative deal with workers after strikes

Around 40,000 employees at the country's largest carmaker walked off the job on Friday, according to union figures, in the first such action for a decade.

The union said on Monday that it had returned to talks with the company and had postponed shorter strikes planned for early this week.

Hyundai said on Tuesday that the two sides had struck a "tentative agreement", while the union indicated that the firm had agreed to partly meet its demands.

"We agreed to increase the basic monthly salary by 100,000 won ($72) and pay a bonus equivalent to four months' salary," the union told AFP in a statement.

The company would also meet another demand to raise the retirement age once the government passes legislation on a nationwide hike from 60 years to 65.

Hyundai will not apply the wage peak system, which gradually reduces the salaries of older workers in their final years, after the retirement age is extended, the union said.

Union members will vote on the proposals on August 31.

"We acknowledge the commitment of our employees and appreciate the efforts of our negotiating teams in reaching this tentative agreement," a Hyundai spokesman told AFP.

The company's workers have staged a total of 60 hours of strikes this year, causing estimated losses of around $1.6 billion, according to calculations by local news agency Newsis.

Hyundai posted record second-quarter revenue of 49.2 trillion won, although operating profit fell 20.8 percent year-on-year amid weaker sales.

B.Turner--SFF