Samsung, SK on high alert as more chip engineers move 삼성, SK, 엔지니어이동증가에 비상

[김우정]

최근 SK하이닉스에서 반도체설계담당 엔지니어가 합의를 깨고 마이크론으로 이직하여 법적처벌을 받았습니다.

삼성전자와 SK하이닉스는 기술유출문제로 긴장하고 있습니다.

30여년전에는 우리나라기업 미국과 일본의 선진기술을 탈취하는 일이 있었습니다.

엔지니어들의 급여와 처우를 개선하면 이문제가 해결될 까요? 

Samsung, SK on high alert as more chip engineers move to foreign rivals
삼성, SK, 해외 경쟁사로 반도체 엔지니어 이동 증가에 비상

By Baek Byung-yeul 백병열 기자
Posted : 2024-03-11 16:57 Updated : 2024-03-11 17:26
Korea Times

A former senior engineer of Samsung Electronics, center, is escorted out of the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho District, Seoul, after being questioned on charges of leaking key semiconductor technologies to a Chinese company, Jan. 16. Yonhap 삼성전자의 전 선임 엔지니어(가운데)가 1월 16일 중국 기업에 반도체 핵심 기술을 유출한 혐의로 조사를 받은 후 서울 서초구 서울중앙지방법원에서 호송되고 있다. 연합

Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are closely monitoring a troubling trend of technology theft involving ongoing efforts to poach talent, not only from Chinese chip companies but also from their American counterparts.
삼성전자와 SK하이닉스는 중국 반도체 회사들뿐만 아니라 미국 회사들의 인재들을 밀렵하려는 지속적인 노력과 관련된 골치 아픈 기술 탈취 추세를 예의주시하고 있다.

Despite efforts by companies to enhance security measures and bind talents through non-compete agreements, attempts to recruit professionals and poach the advanced technologies of Korean companies are expected to increase at a time when securing technological supremacy in the semiconductor sector has become crucial in the era of AI, according to industry sources and experts on Monday.
월요일 업계와 전문가들에 따르면 비경쟁 협약을 통한 기업들의 보안조치 강화와 인재 유치 노력에도 불구하고 AI 시대를 맞아 반도체 분야 기술 우위 확보가 중요해진 상황에서 전문 인력 충원과 국내 기업의 앞선 기술 탈취 시도가 늘어날 것으로 보인다.

Instances of technology leakage and theft have surfaced once again as a former engineer from SK hynix, a leading player in the high-bandwidth memory (HBM) market crucial for AI services, transitioned to the U.S. chipmaker Micron.
AI 서비스에 필수적인 고대역폭 메모리(HBM) 시장의 선두주자인 SK하이닉스 출신 엔지니어가 미국 반도체업체 마이크론으로 이직하면서 기술 유출,도난 사례가 다시 한 번 수면 위로 떠올랐다.

The engineer, who was in charge of chip design for DRAM and HBM memory at SK hynix, moved to Micron in July 2022, right after retiring from the Korean company. He made the transition to the firm despite having agreed with SK hynix not to work for a rival company for the next two years following his retirement.
SK하이닉스에서 D램과 HBM 메모리용 칩 설계를 담당했던 이 엔지니어는 퇴임 직후인 2022년 7월 마이크론으로 자리를 옮겼다. 그는 퇴임 후 2년 동안 경쟁사에서 일하지 않기로 SK하이닉스와 합의했음에도 불구하고 회사로 전환했다.

In response, SK hynix filed a lawsuit against the engineer to prevent him from working for its rival last August. A local court ruled that the former employee cannot work for Micron until July 26 and must pay SK hynix 10 million won ($7,637) per day if he violates the ruling.
이에 대해 SK하이닉스는 지난 8월 해당 엔지니어가 경쟁사에서 일하지 못하게 해달라며 소송을 제기했다. 법원은 해당 엔지니어가 7월 26일까지 마이크론에서 일할 수 없으며 이 판결을 어길 경우 SK하이닉스에 하루 1000만원(7,637달러)을 지급해야 한다고 판결했다.

The industry perceives technology leakage as a significant issue, particularly considering the approximately seven months it took for the court to reach a decision. In the competitive HBM market, where SK hynix vies for market dominance alongside Samsung and Micron, the margin of technological difference is only a matter of a few months.
특히 법원이 판결을 내리기까지 약 7개월이 걸린 점을 고려하면 업계에서는 기술 유출을 중대한 문제로 보고 있다. SK하이닉스가 삼성, 마이크론과 함께 시장 지배력을 다투고 있는 경쟁적인 HBM 시장에서 기술 차이의 폭은 불과 몇 달 만의 문제다.

"The engineer who moved to Micron is known to be a key figure in HBM development. It remains unclear why he violated the non-compete agreement for two years and moved to Micron. Technology and personnel leaks occur in most cases during the job change process, and while the law does not solve everything, it is necessary to emphasize that strong penalties will be imposed if semiconductor technologies that fall under national industrial secrets are leaked," Lee Jong-hwan, a professor at the Department of System Semiconductor Engineering at Sangmyung University, said.
이종환 상명대 시스템반도체공학과 교수는 "마이크론으로 이직한 엔지니어는 HBM 개발의 핵심 인물로 알려져 있다,"며 "2년간 비경쟁 협약을 어기고 마이크론으로 이직한 이유는 아직 불분명하다"고 설명했다. 기술,인력 유출은 이직 과정에서 대부분 발생하는데 법으로 모든 것이 해결되는 것은 아니지만 국가 산업기밀에 해당하는 반도체 기술이 유출될 경우 강력한 처벌이 내려진다는 점을 강조할 필요가 있다"고 말했다.

Samsung Electronics, as well as SK hynix, have suffered damage due to technology leaks. A former Samsung engineer was investigated in January for allegedly transferring the production process of the 20-nanometer DRAM chip, developed by Samsung in 2014, to a Chinese chip company. Additionally, last year, one of Samsung's chip executives came under scrutiny for misusing engineering data from the semiconductor factory between 2018 and 2019.
SK하이닉스뿐만 아니라 삼성전자도 기술 유출로 인해 피해를 입었다. 전직 삼성 엔지니어는 2014년 삼성이 개발한 20나노미터 D램 칩의 생산 과정을 중국 칩 회사에 이전한 혐의로 1월에 조사를 받았다. 게다가 작년에 삼성의 칩 임원 중 한 명이 2018년과 2019년 사이에 반도체 공장의 공학 데이터를 오용한 것으로 정밀 조사를 받았다.

According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the number of cases involving the cross-border leakage of industrial technology increased from 14 in 2019 to 23 in 2023. During the same period, the number of chip-related cases increased from three to 15. This highlights the severity of technology leaks in the semiconductor industry compared to other sectors.
산업통상자원부에 따르면 산업기술의 국경 간 유출과 관련된 사건은 2019년 14건에서 2023년 23건으로 증가하였다. 같은 기간 칩 관련 사건은 3건에서 15건으로 증가하였다. 이는 다른 부문에 비해 반도체 산업의 기술유출의 심각성을 부각시키는 것이다.

“Hiring professionals at a rival company is the best way to quickly bridge the technology gap. The government needs to strengthen manpower management for these engineers in collaboration with companies," the professor added.
그는 "경쟁사에 전문 인력을 채용하는 것이 기술격차를 빠르게 해소하는 최선의 방법"이라며 "정부는 기업과 협업해 이들 기술자에 대한 인력 관리를 강화할 필요가 있다"고 덧붙였다.

At present, the government is actively working to bolster penalties aimed at preventing the leakage of national core technologies. Bills proposing strengthened penalties have been introduced in the National Assembly. In November, the Trade, Industry, and Energy Committee of the Assembly endorsed an amendment to the Industrial Technology Protection Act, which facilitates punishment for the leakage of national core technologies.
현재 정부는 국가핵심기술 유출방지를 위한 처벌 강화에 적극적으로 나서고 있다. 강화된 처벌을 제안하는 법안들이 국회에 발의되어 있다. 11월 국회 산업통상자원위원회는 국가핵심기술 유출에 대한 처벌을 용이하게 하는 산업기술보호법 개정안을 의결하였다.
The current law solely delineates penalties for instances of technology leakage with the intention of use or enabling use in foreign countries. However, concerns have been raised regarding the difficulty in substantiating the intention of use in foreign countries, making it challenging to enforce penalties.
현행법은 외국에서 사용 또는 사용을 목적으로 기술을 유출한 경우에 대한 처벌만을 규정하고 있다. 그러나 외국에서 사용의향을 입증하기 어렵다는 문제가 제기되어 처벌의 집행이 쉽지 않다.

Kim Dae-jong, a professor of business administration at Sejong University, said that Korean companies need to make efforts to improve the treatment of their engineers.
김대종 세종대 경영학과 교수는 한국 기업들이 엔지니어들의 처우 개선을 위해 노력할 필요가 있다고 말했다.

"Companies should strengthen compensation for their core workers. It is necessary to provide them with sufficient treatment to increase job satisfaction and implement a system that can sufficiently extend their professional lifespan. Building a positive relationship with them is crucial," Kim said.
김 교수는 "기업은 핵심인력에 대한 보상을 강화해야 한다,"며 "이들에게 충분한 처우를 제공해 직무만족도를 높이고, 전문직 수명을 충분히 연장할 수 있는 제도를 시행할 필요가 있다,"고 말했다.

#Technologytheft기술도난 #Talentpoaching인재밀렵 #Semiconductorsector반도체산업 #Non-competeagreements비경쟁협약 #Courtruling법원판결 #Engineeringdata공학데이터 #Industrialtechnology산업기술 #Penalties처벌 #Jobsatisfaction직무만족도 #Compensation보상