Unionised workers at Samsung Biologics (the contract drug-manufacturing arm of South Korea's Samsung Group) began a five-day general strike on Friday at its plant in Incheon, the company's first work stoppage since its founding in 2011, after 13 rounds of wage talks failed to close a wide gap between union demands and management's offer. Workers are seeking a 14 percent rise in base and performance pay along with substantial one-off bonuses, while the company has proposed a combined 6.2 percent increase. The company warned that a full-scale stoppage could cost more than 640 billion won (US$433 million) — roughly half its first-quarter revenue — and industry observers cautioned that any break in production continuity could draw scrutiny from regulators such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which sets strict process-integrity standards for biopharmaceutical manufacturers.