SEOUL, July 27 (Yonhap) -- SsangYong Motor Co.'s union has accepted a wage deal to avoid any production losses amid tough competition from rivals, the company said Thursday.
"The company and its union shared the view that a stable labor-management relation is essential in increasing sales of the G4 Rexton SUV and maintaining its leading status in the subcompact SUV market," the company said in a statement.
The 3,451-member union held a vote to decide whether to accept this year's wage deal or not. A total of 3,295 workers cast a ballot, the statement said.
About 67 percent of 3,295 SsangYong workers voted in favor of the deal, which offers an increase of 53,000 won in basic monthly wages, a bonus worth 2.5 million won (US$2,200) and 150 company shares now valued at 1 million won per employee, it said.
SsangYong workers signed wage deals without staging any strikes for the past eight years.
In March 2011, Indian carmaker Mahindra & Mahindra, which currently has a 72.85 percent stake in SsangYong, acquired the carmaker in bankruptcy proceedings as part of its "globalization strategy."
In South Korea's subcompact SUV market, SsangYong competes with four other carmakers -- Hyundai Motor Co., Kia Motors Corp., Renault Samsung and GM Korea Co.
In 2016, SsangYong claimed a 54 percent share of the 104,936 subcompact SUV market here. The domestic B-segment SUV market is expected to reach 130,000-140,000 units this year on rising demand for small crossovers.
 SsangYong Motor's upgraded Tivoli subcompact SUV (Yonhap)
kyongae.choi@yna.co.kr
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