On June 1, 2026, South Korean media outlet Seoul Economic Daily reported that as demands by large company labor unions in South Korea to "pay a certain percentage of operating profit as performance-based pay" are spreading, the labor-management relations of Toyota Motor Corporation, one of the world's largest automakers, are drawing attention.

According to the article, the Korea Employers Federation (KEF) on the same day announced a report titled "Implications of Toyota's Labor-Management Relations." The report cited Toyota's in-house media "ToyoTimes" and introduced statements by a labor union executive at the labor-management council. The Toyota labor union, before demanding wage increases or profit sharing, reportedly showed an attitude of confronting quality degradation and issues at production sites directly.

Toyota labor union chairman Keisuke Kito stated at the council, "I am here with the resolve to break away from conventional assumptions and uniform ways of thinking," and "Even uniform rules and systems decided by the labor union until now, if they hinder change, we will review them without any sacred cows."

He also reportedly emphasized, "Every individual working at Toyota must take ownership and tackle issues," and "'How do our norms compare to those of the world?' 'Isn't there more we can do?' We must constantly confront these questions, ask ourselves, turn negatives to zero, and then surely turn them into positives." The KEF evaluated this stance of the Toyota labor union as "in stark contrast to South Korean labor-management relations, which focus on demands for profit distribution."

The article explained that in South Korea recently, triggered by SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics labor unions announcing strikes demanding performance-based pay, a movement to demand "○% of operating profit" or "○% of net profit" be paid as performance-based pay is spreading. In fact, the Hyundai Motor labor union demanded 30% of net profit as performance-based pay in this year's wage and collective bargaining, and the Kia Motors labor union is also demanding 30% of operating profit be paid.

Lee Dong-geun, Executive Vice Chairman of the KEF, said, "In South Korea, cases of demanding excessive profit distribution are increasing, but even a world-class automobile company like Toyota feels an unprecedented sense of crisis, and the fact that the labor union is proactively thinking about survival strategies and leading change offers significant implications for South Korean labor-management relations."

The article reported, "As long as corporate profits are generated not only by management and shareholders but also by frontline workers, the debate over how to distribute the results is likely to continue."

Regarding this, South Korean netizens' comments included: "What is the state of the Japanese economy as a result?", "Japanese automakers are experiencing successive performance declines, which is why such statements are being made, I suppose.", "Managers and executives should also receive the same salary to be on the same page as workers.", "It's astonishing that they even bothered to create such a report.", and "While I don't think performance-based pay is the only right way, shouldn't they propose how working conditions can be improved?"

Other opinions included: "In South Korea, dismissals due to age are earlier and years of service are shorter than in Japan. Why aren't such problems addressed?", "Why should only workers emulate Japan? Managers and politicians should also learn from Japan and other countries regarding employment systems and social security.", "If a company's performance deteriorates, workers suffer disadvantages through layoffs and so on, so demanding profits is natural, isn't it?", "Japan doesn't have Samsung or SK, and other working environments and situations are different, so a comparison isn't possible. It's a sophism that only sides with the management class.", and "Companies easily abandon workers, yet workers are told to think about what they can do for the company? What a convenient narrative." (Translation/Editing by Higuchi)