We remain committed to thorough due diligence to prevent our business operations from causing or contributing to any adverse impacts on human rights or engaging in human rights abuses. All complaints or grievances filed by individuals or groups that are adversely affected by our business operations are promptly investigated to seek effective remedies.
In April 2024, we established and published the Global Grievance Resolution Policy. Following this, we developed guidelines to ensure the policy's effective implementation and distributed them to subsidiaries worldwide.
Furthermore, in January 2025, we appointed dedicated grievance resolution personnel at several sales subsidiaries and research centers lacking clear grievance channels and governance systems. We also provided training on our grievance resolution policy and guidelines to grievance resolution personnel worldwide, including those newly appointed. This training aimed to enhance our efforts that our grievance mechanisms and processes are set up and operated in line with the effectiveness criteria for non-judicial grievance mechanisms outlined in the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
We established the Global Grievance Resolution Policy in April 2024 to ensure grievances handled in a fair and consistent manner globally. The policy provides an overview of our grievance channels, handling procedures, and principles. In order to minimize gaps between the policy and actual operations, we reviewed the current status of grievance handling operations at our business sites worldwide, and all organizational units that handle grievances — either independently or in collaboration — came together to discuss the unified standards. Additionally, we established and released our first Global Grievance Resolution Policy by collecting the opinions of our internal and external stakeholders such as employee representative bodies, international human rights organizations and an NGO specialized in access to remedy.
We operate a wide range of grievance channels across the organization, both globally and locally, to receive grievances from internal and external stakeholders. A complainant may report a grievance anonymously or choose to be identified. We are committed to upholding the confidentiality of the grievance and protecting the complainant in all cases. At the same time, we do not tolerate retaliation against the complainant in response to filing a grievance. Reported grievances are assigned to different organizational unit(s) based on the nature of the grievance and, if necessary, several organizational units work together toward effective remedies.
While grievances are generally processed in the order of when they are received, higher-priority complaints are dealt in an urgent manner due to their severity in line with the UNGPs rationale, considering that delayed responses could lead to irremediable harm. The grievance procedure consists of four steps — receipt, investigation, notification and resolution — and the goal is to handle and close grievances within three months. However, depending on the characteristics of the grievances such as where the grievance involves external stakeholders or possible violation of the law, the procedure may take more than three months and there may be changes to the procedure. Additionally, we may close an ineligible grievance such as where the facts cannot be verified or where the grievance is unfounded, exaggerated or deceiving. In such cases, the grounds for closing the grievance will be communicated. Furthermore, we may reinvestigate the closed case only when reasonable grounds are provided.
We are committed to complying with the following principles throughout the entire procedure to handle grievances reported via our internal grievance channels and third-party channels.
Generally, it is recommended to make an attempt first to settle grievances directly between the affected parties. Where this has failed or where the grievance itself makes the direct settlement impossible or inappropriate, a complainant shall raise it through a formal grievance channel.
In accordance with Principle 31 of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs), we are committed to providing effective grievance mechanisms that are legitimate, accessible, predictable, equitable, transparent and rights-compatible as well as a source of continuous learning and based on engagement and dialogue. This includes but is not limited to operating grievance channels in various languages, eliminating factors that hamper the accessibility of the channels, providing a gender lens to the grievance handling procedure and handling reported grievances for fairness.
We respect the rights of complainants in good faith to file a grievance without any fear of retaliation, intimidation, disadvantage or punishment for filing a grievance. We also provide confidentiality and anonymity during the investigation process to prevent risks of retaliation. Complainants or witnesses who believe they are being retaliated against for filing a grievance should immediately raise their concerns with the company. We are committed to investigating and addressing such complaints promptly and impartially.
We recognize the importance of promoting and protecting the human rights of human rights defenders and do not tolerate nor contribute to any threats, intimidation or physical attacks against them. We are committed to constructively communicating and consulting with human rights defenders who raise concerns on the human rights impacts of our business activities.
We are committed to maintaining strict confidentiality of grievances, and verbal and written information provided by the complainant and related parties with respect to the rights of privacy and data protection. There are internal guidance and processes in place to avoid exposing any information that may identify the complainant without gaining the complainant’s explicit consent. Only when it is necessary for investigation purposes, related information will be disclosed to the relevant personnel in compliance with applicable legal obligations.
We respect the rights of a complainant to participate in or to utilize other judicial and non-judicial grievance processes. We do not interfere with or obstruct their rights to do so and are committed to collaborating with state-based judicial and non-judicial mechanisms as needed.
Where we identify that we have caused or contributed to an adverse human rights impact, we are committed to providing proper remedial measures through legitimate processes and cooperating with a third-party where deemed necessary. A decision on the outcome of the grievance is made by taking the complainant’s desired remedy into account. Effective remediation may include apologies, restitution, rehabilitation, financial or non-financial compensation and punitive sanctions, as well as the prevention of harm through, for example, injunctions or guarantees of non-repetition. Dedicated policies including our Migrant Worker Policy and Child Labor Prohibition Policy outline how we are committed to remediating infringements experienced by vulnerable groups.
Samsung Electronics conducts regular assessments to review and improve our systems and processes to ensure that individuals raising grievances can effectively access grievance channels and receive appropriate remedies.
We conduct an annual survey to track the number, types, and trends of grievances submitted through our grievance channels. Departments responsible for human rights duties at each business site review the survey results to monitor changes in channel usage and the types of grievances received. These findings have been used in the development of our Global Grievance Resolution Policy.
Every year, we conduct an anonymous survey on grievance resolution to assess awareness and satisfaction with regional grievance channels, as well as to evaluate the grievance resolution process and outcomes, including how grievants use and trust these channels. This survey verifies whether local grievance channels align with our Global Grievance Resolution Policy and adhere to the effectiveness criteria outlined in the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs). Until now, employee satisfaction surveys on grievance resolution have primarily been conducted at DX Division production sites. However, in line with our policy implementation plan, these surveys will be expanded in 2025 to include overseas sales subsidiaries and research centers within DX Division.