Seoul, March 14 Hyundai Steel said on Friday it has shifted to an emergency management mode in response to growing challenges, including the recent imposition of steel tariffs by the United States and an ongoing strife with unionised workers.
The company announced that all executives have taken a 20 percent pay cut effective Thursday, while the company has begun reviewing a voluntary retirement program for employees.
In addition, the company plans to minimise overseas business trips and implement extreme cost-cutting measures across operations, reports Yonhap news agency.
The decision by Hyundai Steel, South Korea's second-biggest steelmaker by sales, reflects the mounting pressure facing the domestic steel industry.
Hyundai Steel has already scaled back operations at its Pohang plant due to weakened demand caused by a downturn in the domestic construction market. It is also grappling with the influx of low-priced steel products from China and Japan, which have eroded its domestic market share.
The company's situation has been exacerbated by U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to impose a 25 percent tariff on steel imports to America, including goods from South Korea, which went into effect this week.
Additionally, Hyundai Steel has been locked in prolonged wage negotiations with its labor union since September. The union has conducted multiple strikes, including partial and full-scale walkouts, disrupting production.
"Without strong self-rescue measures, improving the company's financial situation amid the severe domestic and global crises would be extremely difficult," the company said.
Meanwhile, Hyundai Motor Group said it has earned the most awards from an annual crash safety evaluation by the U.S. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) among competing global automotive groups.
According to the group, five Hyundai Motor models, four Genesis models and two Kia models garnered the Top Safety Pick+ (TSP+) awards in crash evaluations conducted by the IIHS. Genesis' GV90 was also recognised with a TSP award.
The models recognised for excellence in crash safety include the Ioniq 5, the Ioniq 6, the Tuscon and the Santa Fe sport utility vehicle (SUV), along with the Genesis GV70 and GV80.
Notably, the Tucson, GV70 and GV80 have earned TSP+ ratings for five consecutive years, dating back to 2021.
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