( LEAD ) Hyundai Heavy shareholders OK spinoff plan amid labor union opposition ( ATTN : RECASTS headline , lead ; UPDATES throughout with details on shareholder meeting result ; TRIMS ; UPDATES photos ) SEOUL , Feb . 27 ( Yonhap ) -- Shareholders of Hyundai Heavy Industries Co . , South Korea ' s major shipbuilder , gave the green light on Monday to the company ' s overhaul scheme to split the troubled shipbuilder in an effort to regain financial health amid strong opposition from the labor union . The preliminary shareholder meeting , held earlier in the day , passed the proposal to separate the shipyard , once the world ' s largest , into six independent businesses , the company said . The approval of the scheme will help the company push ahead with the plan to reorganize the ailing company into four different affiliates : shipbuilding , electronics , construction equipment and robotics . The company already spun off its service and green energy divisions into separate firms late last year . Hyundai Heavy Industries President Kang Hwan - gu raps the gavel as shareholders approve the company ' s spinoff scheme in Ulsan , 414 kilometers south of Seoul , on Feb . 27 , 2017 . ( Yonhap ) The shakeup comes as part of a broader effort by the troubled shipyard to salvage itself from high indebtedness . The spinoff is expected to reduce the shipyard ' s debt ratio to 95 percent from 106 percent at the end of last year , the company said . Opposing such a plan , unionized workers at Hyundai Heavy staged a strike for the third consecutive workday , which caused the shareholder meeting to be adjourned four times until it finished in less than two hours . The labor union called on its 14 , 000 workers to stage an eight hour sit - down starting at 8 : 00 a . m . , continuing the strike following the two previous walkouts on Thursday and Friday of last week . The strike has been aimed at raising voices against the company ' s spinoff decision , which the labor union claims comes at the expense of workers ' jobs . Over a thousand workers who hold company shares attended the shareholder meeting in an act of protest , making a scene with the police as they tried to block the voting process . Hundreds of unionized workers at Hyundai Heavy tussle with the police as they try to stop the shareholder meeting in protest of the company ' s spinoff plan , in Ulsan , on Feb . 27 , 2017 . ( Yonhap ) South Korean shipbuilders , including Hyundai Heavy ' s rivals Samsung Heavy Industries Co . and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co . , have been under financial strain due to a delay in the construction of overseas facilities and falling new orders , resulting in massive losses . The series of strikes over the past week came as the shipbuilder unveiled a plan last year to reorganize its businesses into six separate companies to regain competitiveness and financial health . The decision is part of the shipyard ' s self - rescue plans to sell noncore assets and cut jobs . Currently , about 23 , 000 workers are recruited by Hyundai Heavy , of which some 4 , 000 - 5 , 000 , or 20 percent of the workforce , are expected to be relocated due to the spinoff . The company said the scheme will be dealt with in accordance with the law , warning that it will " strictly hold responsible any unlawful acts to sabotage the shareholder meeting . " Security guards and police are on standby in Ulsan , 414 kilometers south of Seoul , in front of a hall where the shareholder meeting of Hyundai Heavy will be held , in case of scuffles between company officials and the labor union , on Feb . 27 , 2017 . ( Yonhap ) elly @ yna . co . kr ( END )