Samsung pays chip workers 100% bonus as AI boom drives record profit

Samsung Electronics will pay employees in its semiconductor division performance bonuses of up to 100% of their base salary for the first half of 2026, according to the Chosun Ilbo, as the AI-driven memory supercycle continues to deliver unprecedented earnings for the South Korean chipmaker.chosun

The bonus comes as Samsung prepares to report what analysts expect will be a third consecutive quarter of record operating profit. Reuters reported on Sunday that the company is likely to flag an operating profit of 86 trillion won ($56.35 billion) for the April-June quarter on Tuesday, an approximately 18-fold increase from 4.7 trillion won a year earlier, according to an LSEG SmartEstimate based on forecasts from 30 analysts.reuters+1

A Landmark Compensation Deal

The bonus payout stems from a tentative wage agreement reached on May 20 between Samsung and its labor union, which narrowly averted an 18-day strike by nearly 48,000 workers. Under the deal, Samsung agreed to allocate 10.5% of its semiconductor division's operating profit as a special performance bonus, paid in company stock, plus an additional 1.5% in cash.semiwiki+3

Bloomberg reported that Samsung would distribute about 40 trillion won ($26.6 billion) to chip employees as bonuses for the full year, with workers receiving an average of 513 million won ($340,000). Memory division employees stand to receive even more — up to 600 million won ($400,000) based on projected full-year operating profit of around 300 trillion won for the DS division.evrimagaci+2

Record Earnings Powered by AI Demand

The bonus provisions reflect a dramatic turnaround for Samsung's chip business. In the first quarter of 2026, the DS division posted 53.7 trillion won in operating profit, up from roughly 1 trillion won in the same period a year earlier, contributing over 90% of the company's total quarterly earnings.news.samsung+1

Booming demand for AI inference infrastructure has tightened memory supply globally, with analysts expecting DRAM average selling prices to rise 45% from the prior quarter and NAND flash up 50%. The Korea Herald reported that for the full year, Samsung is projected to report operating profit of nearly 345 trillion won, an all-time record.koreaherald

Internal Tensions Emerge

The generous payouts have not come without controversy. Employees in other Samsung divisions have protested the widening pay gap, with mobile division workers expected to receive only about 6 million won in bonuses — roughly 100 times less than their semiconductor colleagues. Workers in non-chip divisions staged a protest in June, wearing black in solidarity against the disparity.wccftech

The bonus shares are subject to a vesting schedule: employees may sell one-third immediately, another third after one year, and the remainder after two years.thenextweb+1