The operator of the Seoul subway system reached a last-minute deal in wage negotiations with unionized workers early Friday, avoiding an all-out strike that was slated to begin the same day.

Seoul Metro inked the deal with all three of its labor unions, which took the 2.5 percent wage increase based on the government guidelines. The two parties also compromised on the state-run company's plans to reduce staff, with Seoul Metro pledging to hire some 630 new employees instead of the initially-planned 464.

The company plans to cut staff numbers by over 2,000 by 2026, but the unions plan to ask the government to review this.

As part of the deal, Seoul Metro vowed better working conditions such as acquiring resting areas for the employees.

The agreement ended the workers' plans for a strike, which would have disrupted one of the major transportation systems in the country's capital. Seoul's subway users are still affected by the Korea Railroad Corp.'s ongoing strike, which jointly operates some of the Seoul subway lines including Nos. 1, 3 and 4.

Seoul Metro is the main operator of the subway Lines 1 to 8 in the capital.

If the negotiations fell through, it would have marked the third straight year since 2022 that Seoul's subway workers went on strike. This year's negotiation was conducted with all three of the labor unions of Seoul Metro, which in the past involved two larger unions.