Members of the Korean Metalworkers' Union have decided to temporarily suspend the production process at Hyundai enterprises. The reason for the collective action was management's plans to integrate more than twenty-five thousand humanoid robots into work processes. Currently, employees of one of the factories have reduced the length of the work shift by four hours, which has led to partial downtime of production lines. According to industry analysts, such a situation creates the risk of under-delivery of about five thousand vehicles and may lead to a decrease in the company's revenue in excess of one hundred and thirty-five million dollars.

The basis for the current labor dispute was the initiative to introduce Atlas bipedal robotic systems developed by the Boston Dynamics division. Although the mass deployment of this equipment has not yet begun, staff representatives are striving to consolidate the necessary guarantees in the collective agreement ahead of time. The key demands of the union include ensuring workplace stability in the face of digitalization, switching to a fixed wage system, increasing the share of bonus payments, and obtaining a formal veto over decisions related to the implementation of automated systems.

The General Secretary of the union, Pyong Joon-hwan, stressed that the main goal of the current negotiations is to create reliable mechanisms to protect the rights of employees before the start of large-scale automation. This precedent attracts the close attention of the world community, as it can significantly affect approaches to regulating human-machine interaction in industry. In the absence of a constructive compromise, the parties do not exclude the possibility of further expansion of the suspension of work, which will inevitably lead to an increase in the operating costs of the automaker.