While such practices are common in other countries, such contact between workers and senior management are almost unheard of in Korea, where executives were often transferred in from unrelated companies in the business group.
Hynix broke away from that tradition in June last year when it cut ties with the Hyundai Group and changed its name from Hyundai Electronics Industries Co. The new spirit of cooperation came as a surprise to workers.
Tearing down `walls'
"A lot of the walls which separated those above and those below have come down," said Kim Dae-sig, a manager at one of Hynix's chip production lines. "We began to feel that senior management were much more focused on operations."
That has translated into greater efficiency, staff say.
You Ja-ok, 25, who has been working on one of Hynix's chip production lines for the last six years, said the attitude and behavior of staff has changed as they seek to do what they can to help the chipmaker.
By handling the silicone wafers that she helps process more carefully, You has helped the company raise its productivity levels comparable to those of competitors such as industry leader Samsung Electronics Co, the company says.
According to Hynix officials, more careful handling of the silicone wafers from which chips are cut and packaged reduces the amount of particles produced during the chipmaking process. Less dust in the air means fewer chips are damaged, boosting the production levels at Hynix plants.
Even so, Hynix's union leader remains cautious about the performance of the company's new management.
"They have done all they could to address the liquidity problems but we will have to wait and see how good they are at running a semiconductor company," he said.
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