A labor union affiliated with the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) has officially launched at Wemade, demanding a resolution to job insecurity stemming from a change in the largest shareholder and sluggish performance, as well as the establishment of a fair distribution system.
The Wemade Branch of the Korean Chemical, Textile & Food Workers' Union (hereinafter referred to as the Wemade Branch) released an official declaration of establishment on the 30th, marking the formal start of its union activities. Wemade is a major South Korean gaming company that, starting with The Legend of Mir, developed titles such as MIR4 and Night Crows that achieved great success in global markets, and built the blockchain platform ecosystem WEMIX.
Currently, Wemade is undergoing the greatest period of upheaval since its founding, as founder and Chairman Park Kwan-ho sells 100% of his entire stake, resulting in a change of its largest shareholder. The Wemade Branch pointed out that amid growing business uncertainty due to sluggish performance and WEMIX-related issues, management has remained silent without offering even minimal explanations regarding organizational management plans or employment guarantees for employees. Consequently, concerns over potential workforce reductions and business downsizing during the shareholder transition have swept through the workplace, driving employee job insecurity to an extreme level.
In its declaration of establishment, the Wemade Branch stated, “Wemade's growth until now was made possible through the hard work of all workers—including developers, business divisions, operations, and support departments—who dedicated themselves day and night in the field. However, in a rapidly changing market environment, the fruits of project success were concentrated on specific executives and shareholders, while the responsibility and anxiety stemming from business changes or poor performance fell entirely on individual workers.” It explained that this structural contradiction, where employees are excluded from business rewards while bearing the full burden of crisis situations, served as the catalyst for forming the union.
Furthermore, the branch highlighted that core working conditions, such as performance bonus payout criteria, wage structures, and employee benefits, have been unilaterally altered without clear standards. It added that since there was previously no internal representative channel to check management's arbitrary decisions, employees resolved to organize an independent body to directly defend their rights and raise their voices on equal footing.
Going forward, the Wemade Branch plans to enter collective bargaining with management, demanding an end to artificial workforce reductions and layoffs conducted under the pretext of shareholder changes and organizational restructuring, transparent incentive pay structures, protection against deteriorating working conditions, mandatory prior consultation on major business pivots, and guarantees of employment succession and continued operation for core business divisions such as WEMIX.
Through the declaration, the branch emphasized, “We will no longer remain passive beings entrusting our lives to the company's unilateral decision-making,” adding, “Regardless of who becomes the new controlling shareholder, the true owners who built Wemade are us workers. Through our organized power, we will end job insecurity and build a fair, healthy workplace.”
The Korean Chemical, Textile & Food Workers' Union, which the Wemade Branch has joined, is an organization under the KCTU representing around 50,000 members across various industries, including petrochemicals, textiles, food, information and communications technology (ICT), and gaming. Within the gaming industry, employees from companies such as Nexon, NCSoft, Netmarble, Smilegate, Webzen, and Neople are active as union members.
