Samsung Card mulls a cull

Samsung Card, a financial arm of the country’s top conglomerate Samsung Group, said yesterday it is considering a voluntary retirement program in an apparent bid to tide over the economic slump.

About 100 workers are expected to apply for the retirement program this year, market watchers said. Samsung Card carried out a similar scheme last year to slash its workforce.

Market watchers said the job reduction plan comes as decreased commission rates amid the protracted economic slowdown have weighed on the company’s earnings.

The average commission rate for merchants with annual sales of less than 200 million won ($184,000) was lowered to 1.5 percent from the previous 1.8 percent in September, according to the Credit Finance Association.

The reduction in commission rates came as credit card firms received sharp criticism for charging far higher fees to smaller merchants than large retailers, thus pocketing excessive income.

Samsung Life Insurance said it would not reduce its workforce this year.

Yonhap