Reasons why?
GM Korea announced on July 3 that its president James Kim will resign from his position next month to lead the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea. “During the past two years, he has made a great contribution to an increase in sales in the South Korean market, brand awareness enhancement, and customer service innovation,” the company explained.
According to industry sources, reasons for his resignation include sluggish sales of the all-new Cruze and a slow progress of wage negotiations as well as the expansion of the role of the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea for KORUS FTA renegotiation and so on.
These days, GM Korea is in the face of various demands from labor union members in spite of its red ink amounting to 530 billion won. The members are preparing to go on strike by asking the National Labor Relations Commission to act as a mediator. “The strike seems to have to do with the ongoing reorganization of business in Asian countries led by the headquarters,” one of them mentioned.
Last month, GM Korea sold 11,455 cars in the South Korean market and exported 32,237 cars. The domestic sales volume plummeted by 36.6% from a year ago and the exports fell 12.9%, too. In the first half of this year, the company sold 72,708 cars in the domestic market while exporting 206,290. The combined figure showed a year-on-year decline of 9.3%.