SK Hynix Tentative Deal: 60% of Performance Bonus in Stock

The structure matters more than the headline number: tying most of the bonus to equity converts a cyclical cash cost into a retention and alignment mechanism, and the split between immediately sellable and deferred stock shows the company balancing worker liquidity against holding power. It affects the chipmaker's cost base and its own shareholder register, since employees become a recurring source of supply as tranches vest. Whether the union ratifies, and whether the 40/20 cash-stock mix becomes a template across Korea's semiconductor sector, is the open question.