Major South Korean pay TV operators are implementing voluntary retirement programs amid deteriorating business conditions. (Image courtesy of Korea Bizwire)
SEOUL, Nov. 29 (Korea Bizwire) – Major South Korean pay TV operators are implementing voluntary retirement programs amid deteriorating business conditions, drawing criticism for shifting the burden of financial challenges onto workers.
Following LG HelloVision, the country’s largest cable TV operator by subscribers, both Skylife and HCN have announced voluntary retirement plans. Skylife revealed its program during a management briefing on November 26, with applications being accepted from December 2 to 12 and retirements effective January 1, 2025.
A Skylife representative explained that the measure aims to “improve the company’s top-heavy workforce structure and secure growth momentum by responding more nimbly to market changes.” HCN, Skylife’s subsidiary, followed suit with a similar announcement on November 27, describing it as “part of efforts to improve the company’s constitution for growth.”
LG HelloVision had previously conducted its voluntary retirement program from November 6 to 18. The company cited the need to “overcome challenges in the cable TV business” as the reason for implementing the retirement program.
The industry-wide move comes as pay TV operators face significant financial headwinds. Cable TV operators have seen continuous declines in both broadcast revenue and subscriber numbers. Skylife reported a net loss of 78.9 billion won and operating profit of 44.2 billion won last year – marking the first time in a decade its operating profit fell below 50 billion won. The company’s third-quarter consolidated results showed revenue of 256.9 billion won and operating profit of 1.8 billion won, representing year-over-year declines of 0.5% and 32.5% respectively.
Labor unions have criticized the companies for transferring the burden of poor management onto workers. “While it’s true that subscriber numbers are declining and the business faces challenges, workers shouldn’t have to bear this burden,” said Kim So-ri, head of Skylife’s labor union. “If any unfair practices occur during the voluntary retirement process, the union will take action.”
Ahn Sung-jae, head of Sky HCN’s labor union, characterized the moves as “essentially restructuring” and warned of strong union response to any forced resignations. Park In-cheol, representing LG HelloVision’s union, expressed concern that the company should instead focus on giving hope to younger employees to lead the company forward.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
