Generate/ERILOGO1.gif About ERI Disclaimer

South Korea - Compensation & Benefit Legislation

CAPITAL

Seoul

 

CLIMATE

Temperate climate with rainfall heavier in summer than winter.

 

LANGUAGES

Korean (English is widely taught in junior high and high school).

 

LEGAL SYSTEM

South Korea’s legal system combines elements of continental European civil law systems, Anglo-American law, and Chinese classical thought.

 

CURRENCY

South-Korean Won (1 US Dollar = 1,321.20 KRW as of March 15, 2002)

 

SOUTH KOREA - COST-OF-LIVING

ERI's Relocation Assessor is a recommended source for cost-of-living data.

 

SOUTH KOREA - EMBASSY/CONSULATES

U.S. Embassy at Seoul

82 Sejong-Ro

Chongro-ku Unit

APO AP 96205-0001

Seoul, Korea 110-710

Telephone: [82] (2) 397-4114

Fax: [82] (2) 738-8845

http://usembassy.state.gov/seoul

 

South Korea (Embassy of the Republic of Korea) at Washington D.C.

2450 Massachusetts Avenue N.W.

Washington D.C. 20008

Telephone: (202) 939-5600

Fax: (202) 797-0595

http://emb.dsdn.net/english/frame.htm

 

SOUTH KOREA - HOLIDAYS

 

SOUTH KOREA – LEAVE

Annual Leave: Minimum two weeks paid annual leave each year.

 

Maternity Leave: 60 days – 100% of pay (paid by employer).

 

SOUTH KOREA - MINIMUM AGE

The Labor Standards Law prohibits the employment of persons under age 15 without a special employment certificate from the Labor Ministry. Because education is compulsory through middle school (about age 14), few special employment certificates are issued for full-time employment. Some children are allowed to hold part-time jobs such as selling newspapers.

 

To obtain employment, children under age 18 must have written approval from both of their parents or guardians. Employers can require minors to work only a limited number of overtime hours and are prohibited from employing them at night without special permission from the Labor Ministry.

 

(Section 6.d. Acceptable Conditions of Work, South Korea – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)

 

SOUTH KOREA - MINIMUM REMUNERATION

The minimum wage is reviewed annually. As of July, 2001, the minimum wage was approximately $1.63 (2,100 won) per hour, or approximately $367.67 (474,600 won) per month.

 

(Section 6.e. Acceptable Conditions of Work, South Korea – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)

 

SOUTH KOREA - REMUNERATION

ERI's Geographic and Salary Assessors are recommended sources for international remuneration covering 189 countries.

 

SOUTH KOREA - REPORT OF HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES (2001, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE)

Section 6 Worker Rights

 

a. The Right of Association

 

The Constitution provides workers with the right to associate freely, except public sector employees. Since 1999 government white-collar workers have been allowed to form workplace councils. Blue-collar workers in such government agencies as the postal service, railways, telecommunications, and the National Medical Center are allowed to organize unions. As few as two employees may form a union. Until 1997 the Trade Union Law specified that only one union was permitted at each workplace. Labor law changes in 1997 authorized the formation of competing unions starting in 2002, but implementation of these changes was postponed until 2006 by mutual agreement among members of the Tripartite Commission (with representatives of labor, management, and the Government). All unions are required to notify the authorities when formed or dissolved. According to the Ministry of Labor, in 2000 1.52 million workers, about 11.8 percent of employed workers, were union members, and there were 5,698 trade unions.

 

In the past, the Government did not recognize formally labor federations that were not affiliated with the country's two legally recognized labor groupings--the Federation of Korean Trade Unions (FKTU) and the Independent Korean Federation of Clerical and Financial Workers. However, in the past several years, the Labor Ministry officially recognized some independent white-collar federations representing hospital workers, journalists, and office workers at construction firms and at government research institutes. The courts have ruled that affiliation with the FKTU is not required for an entity to be registered as a legal labor federation. The legalization of the teachers' union paved the way for government recognition of the dissident Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) in 1999. In practice labor federations not formally recognized by the Labor Ministry have operated without government interference.

 

The ban on teachers' unions was lifted in 1999. Accordingly the KCTU-affiliated Korean Teachers' Union (Chonkyojo) and the FKTU-affiliated Korean Union of Teachers and Educational Workers became legal. Although the two teachers' unions have the right to bargain collectively with the Ministry of Education on wages and working conditions--but not school curricula--it is illegal for the unions to take collective action. On October 10, the Korean Teachers and Educational Worker's Union staged a sit-in, during which 800 teachers took monthly or annual leave. On October 27, 10,000 teachers demonstrated in Yoi-do. At year's end, collective bargaining by both teachers unions with the Ministry of Education continued.

 

Election laws that apply to other social organizations regulate unions. These regulations prohibit donations by unions (and other social organizations) to political parties. Some trade unionists have temporarily resigned from their union posts to run for office. In the April 2000 National Assembly election, several candidates from the KCTU-affiliated Democratic Labor Party made unsuccessful bids for Assembly seats.

 

Strikes are prohibited in government agencies, state-run enterprises, and defense industries. By law unions in enterprises determined to be of "essential public interest," including public transportation, utilities, public health, banking, and telecommunications can be ordered to submit to government-ordered arbitration in lieu of striking. However, in practice the Government rarely imposes arbitration. In June workers at the two main airlines held a strike. The Government considered the strikes illegal because the workers did not go through arbitration. During the year, the Seoul District Public Prosecutor's office indicted the chairman of the Korean Federation of Transportation, Public, and Social Services Workers' Unions, Yang Kyung-kyu, on charges of leading the illegal strike at Korean Air in June. Mr. Yang was imprisoned and later released in November. The number of labor disputes has declined in recent years. According to the Korea International Labor Foundation, there were 250 strikes and lockouts, involving 178,000 workers and a loss of 1.894 million working days in 2000, the last full year for which data are available. As of December 4, there had been a total of 222 strikes, involving 72,278 workers with 805,988 working days lost, compared with 238 strikes, involving 162,508 workers with 1,768,421 working days lost for the same period in 2000. The Labor Dispute Adjustment Act requires unions to notify the Labor Ministry of their intention to strike; it mandates a 10-day "cooling-off period" before a work stoppage legally may begin and 15 days notice in public interest sectors. Labor laws prohibit retribution against workers who have conducted a legal strike and allow workers to file complaints of unfair labor practices against employers.

 

In July the Hankuk Ilbo newspaper's trade union completely stopped production at its head office in Seoul and at 4 other production facilities for 20 days, demanding changes in working conditions. The workers returned to the workplace following a promise of consultations with management. By year's end there had been no further progress.

 

In recent years, the Government has cultivated a more neutral stance in labor disputes. However, in a departure from this trend, in April police officers used force at a temporarily closed Daewoo auto factory when workers attempted to storm and occupy the plant. Some 40 demonstrators and 55 police were injured. Two police chiefs subsequently were suspended and reassigned in response to charges of excessive police use of force. The President later expressed deep regret for the excessive use of force by police in this incident (see Sections 1.c. and 2.b.). In February during an earlier demonstration at the Daewoo factory, the police intervened at the request of Daewoo management; arrests were made and numerous Daewoo workers and policemen were injured (see Sections 1.c and 2.b.). According to the KCTU, as of May 89 persons had been arrested during the year for allegedly instigating violent strikes or illegally disrupting business. KCTU chairman Dan Byung Ho and chairman of the Federation of Transportation, Public, and Social Services Workers' Unions Yang Kyung-kyu were arrested for initiating mass rallies and a general strike in June and July. Although there were several large general strikes, the Government did not punish unionists for their participation in these strikes or other mass rallies. According to the Federation of Korean Trade Unions, there are numerous cases where workers who had been fired were later reinstated because the courts ruled that their employers had engaged in unfair labor practices by firing them.

 

The FKTU and KCTU are affiliated with the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions. Most of the FKTU's 20 constituent federations maintain affiliations with international trade secretariats, as does the KCTU Metalworkers Council.

 

b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

 

The Constitution and the Trade Union Law provide for the right of workers to collective bargaining and collective action. This law also empowers workers to file complaints of unfair labor practices against employers who interfere with union organizing or practice discrimination against union members. Employers found guilty of unfair practices can be required to reinstate workers who were fired for union activities. In July five civil servants were summoned and investigated by the police concerning their reason for organizing a rally, but no legal action was taken against them. The Government placed no restrictions on them. The Tripartite Commission has established a subcommittee on the protection of civil servants' basic rights and has discussed the establishment of a civil servants' union.

 

Extensive collective bargaining is practiced, even with unions whose federations are not recognized legally by the Government. The labor laws do not extend the right to organize and bargain collectively to defense industry workers or white-collar government employees, although the Government passed legislation to allow government workers to form workplace councils beginning in 1999, including workers at state or publicly run enterprises.

 

There is no independent system of labor courts. The central and local labor commissions form a semiautonomous agency of the Labor Ministry that adjudicates disputes in accordance with the Labor Dispute Adjustment Law. Each labor commission is composed of equal numbers of representatives of labor and management, plus neutral experts who represent the "public interest." Local labor commissions are empowered to decide on remedial measures in cases involving unfair labor practices and to mediate and, in some situations, arbitrate labor disputes. Arbitration can be made compulsory in sectors of the economy (for example utilities and transportation) deemed essential to public welfare.

 

In 1998 the Government established the Tripartite Commission, with representatives from labor, management, and the Government to deal with labor issues related to the economic downturn. The Tripartite Commission concluded an agreement that covered, among other things, unemployment policy, corporate restructuring, labor conditions, labor market flexibility, and the promotion of basic labor rights. The work of the Commission made it legal for companies to lay off workers due to economic hardship and authorized temporary manpower agencies. Disputes concerning the implementation of the agreement among labor, management, and government representatives led to the withdrawal of the KCTU representatives in 1999.

 

In the past, regulations forbade intervention in disputes by so-called third parties, such as labor federations not recognized by the Government. Labor laws were revised in 1997 to lift the ban on third-party intervention and allow nonrecognized federations to assist member unions involved in a strike. Under this provision, persons who assist trade unions or employers in a dispute or in the course of bargaining are required to register with the Ministry of Labor. Those who fail to do so face a large fine or a maximum sentence of 3 years' imprisonment. However, no one has been charged for failing to register since the 1997 labor law revision.

 

Enterprises in the two export processing zones (EPZ's) had been designated by the Government as public interest enterprises. Workers in these enterprises gradually have been given the rights enjoyed by workers in other sectors of the economy. Labor organizations are permitted in EPZ's.

 

c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

 

The law prohibits forced or compulsory labor, including forced or compulsory labor by children, and it is not known to occur. The country is a major origin and transit point for trafficking of Asian women and children (see Section 6.f.). The Constitution provides that no person shall be punished, placed under preventive restrictions, or subjected to involuntary labor, except as provided by law and through lawful procedures. Some illegal foreign workers allege beatings, forced detention, withheld wages, and seizure of passports by their employers (see Section 6.e.).

 

d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for Employment

 

The Labor Standards Law prohibits the employment of persons under age 15 without a special employment certificate from the Labor Ministry. Because education is compulsory through middle school (about age 14), few special employment certificates are issued for full-time employment. Some children are allowed to hold part-time jobs such as selling newspapers. To obtain employment, children under age 18 must have written approval from both of their parents or guardians. Employers can require minors to work only a limited number of overtime hours and are prohibited from employing them at night without special permission from the Labor Ministry. Child labor laws and regulations are clear and usually enforced when violations are found, but the Government employs too few inspectors to carry out regular inspections. In March the Government ratified International Labor Organization (ILO) Convention 182 on the worst forms of child labor.

 

The Government prohibits forced and bonded child labor and enforces this prohibition (see Section 6.c.). The country is a major origin and transit point for trafficking in Asian women and children (see Section 6.f.).

 

e. Acceptable Conditions of Work

 

The minimum wage is reviewed annually. As of July, 2001, the minimum wage was $1.63 (2,100 won) per hour, or $367.67 (474,600 won) per month. Companies with fewer than 10 employees are exempt from this law. The FKTU and other labor organizations assert that the existing minimum wage does not meet the basic requirements of urban workers. In fact workers earning the minimum wage would have difficulty in providing a decent standard of living for themselves and their families, despite fringe benefits, such as transportation expenses, with which companies normally supplement salaries. However, the money an average blue-collar worker takes home in overtime and bonuses significantly raises the total compensation package. According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, 4.2 percent of the population lived below the poverty level as of July 1999.

 

The Labor Standards Law provides for a maximum regular workweek of 44 hours, and provides for overtime to be compensated at a higher wage. The law also provides for a 24-hour rest period each week. Labor laws also provide for a flexible hours system, under which employers can require laborers to work up to 48 hours during certain weeks without paying overtime, so long as average weekly hours for any given 2 week period do not exceed 44. If a union agrees to a further loosening of the rules, management may ask employees to work up to 56 hours in a given week. Workers may not work more than 12 hours per working day. Labor groups claim that the Government does not enforce adequately the maximum workweek provisions at small companies. After large strikes during the year over demands for a 40-hour workweek, the Tripartite Commission was discussing implementation of a 40-hour, 5-day workweek to be phased in gradually and plans to test the 5-day workweek in some government agencies beginning January 1, 2002, with full execution in the public sector to occur on July 1, 2002.

 

Foreign workers, most of whom come from China, the Philippines, Bangladesh, Nepal, Vietnam, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan, often face difficult working conditions. The Government sought to ameliorate the problems of illegal workers by creating a program that allowed certain foreign workers to enter the country legally to work at established wages with legal safeguards. In 2000 the Government announced that industrial trainees would be allowed to remain in the country for as long as 5 years (previously, those entering the country on trainee visas could remain for 3 years). The Government reports that approximately 23,300 foreign workers and 70,500 industrial trainees are in the country legally, and that there are an additional 220,000 illegal residents. It is difficult for illegal workers to seek relief for loss of pay or unsatisfactory living and working conditions because they face deportation. However, the Government has established counseling centers that hear complaints from illegal foreign workers about issues such as overdue wages and industrial accidents. The MOJ announced in 2000 that it would suspend deportation proceedings for illegal residents awaiting back pay. The MOJ also announced that it would establish a human rights committee for foreign workers to address mistreatment that some foreign workers face from their employers, such as beatings, forced detention, withheld wages, and seizure of passports. Finally, employers reported to abuse foreign workers would be subject to criminal charges and be disadvantaged in the Government's allocation of jobs for overseas workers. Foreign workers have submitted complaints to the Human Rights Commission, but the Commission was not fully operational. The Labor Standards Law also prohibits the abuse of workers. Foreign workers working as language teachers have complained that the language institutes that hired them frequently violated employment contracts, for which the legal system provided insufficient redress.

 

The Government sets health and safety standards, but the accident rate is unusually high by international standards. However, this rate has continued to decline gradually due to improved occupational safety programs and union pressure for better working conditions. Although the number of inspectors has increased from 152 in 1989 to 315 during the year, the Labor Ministry still lacks a sufficient number of inspectors to enforce the laws fully. The law does not provide job security for workers who remove themselves from dangerous work environments.

 

f. Trafficking in Persons

 

There is no single law that specifically prohibits trafficking in persons, although various statutes can be used to prosecute traffickers; trafficking is a problem.

 

The Republic of Korea is a country of origin, transit, and destination for trafficking in persons. Young female Koreans are trafficked primarily for sexual exploitation, mainly to the United States, but also to other Western countries and Japan. Female aliens from many countries, primarily Chinese women, are trafficked through Korea to the United States and many other parts of the world. In addition to trafficking through air, much transit traffic occurs in the country's territorial waterways by ship. There are also reports that women from Russia are trafficked to the country for sexual exploitation.

 

In addition the country is considered a major transit point for alien smugglers, including traffickers of primarily Asian women and children for the sex trade and domestic servitude. Relatively small numbers of Korean economic migrants, seeking opportunities abroad, are believed to have become victims of traffickers as well (see Section 5). There have been reports of the falsification of government documents by travel agencies; many cases involved the trafficking or smuggling of citizens of China to Western countries.

 

SOUTH KOREA - STANDARD WORKWEEK

The Labor Standards Law provides for a maximum regular workweek of 44 hours, and provides for overtime to be compensated at a higher wage. The law also provides for a 24-hour rest period each week. Labor laws also provide for a flexible hours system, under which employers can require laborers to work up to 48 hours during certain weeks without paying overtime, so long as average weekly hours for any given 2 week period do not exceed 44. If a union agrees to a further loosening of the rules, management may ask employees to work up to 56 hours in a given week. Workers may not work more than 12 hours per working day.

 

Labor groups claim that the Government does not enforce adequately the maximum workweek provisions at small companies. After large strikes during the year over demands for a 40-hour workweek, the Tripartite Commission was discussing implementation of a 40-hour, 5-day workweek to be phased in gradually and plans to test the 5-day workweek in some government agencies beginning January 1, 2002, with full execution in the public sector to occur on July 1, 2002.

 

(Section 6.e. Acceptable Conditions of Work, South Korea – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)