{"id":2202736,"date":"2023-11-14T08:00:50","date_gmt":"2023-11-13T23:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?p=2202736"},"modified":"2023-11-13T16:43:47","modified_gmt":"2023-11-13T07:43:47","slug":"south-koreas-plan-to-modify-52-hour-workweek-cap-likely-to-meet-mixed-reactions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/11\/south-koreas-plan-to-modify-52-hour-workweek-cap-likely-to-meet-mixed-reactions\/","title":{"rendered":"South Korea\u2019s plan to modify 52-hour workweek cap likely to meet mixed reactions"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">South Korea\u2019s Ministry of Employment and Labor <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.moel.go.kr\/news\/enews\/report\/enewsView.do?news_seq=15798\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">announced<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> the findings of its \u201cSurvey on Working Hours.\u201d The survey revealed that while the 52-hour workweek (comprising 40 legal hours plus 12 hours overtime) is largely effective, some industries and occupations continue to struggle. Public opinion was split; 48.2% acknowledged its benefit in reducing long working hours, whereas 54.9% pointed out the challenges in catering to the diverse needs of various sectors. In response, businesses have adopted strategies like <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/minwon.moel.go.kr\/rptcenterType16\/regist.do\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">inclusive wages<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, additional hiring, order reductions and, in some cases, disregarding legal regulations.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Following these insights, the government has pledged to maintain the 52-hour framework but with an emphasis on flexible management for \u201ccertain business sectors with heavy workloads.\u201d The government aims to collaborate with labor and management to introduce measures allowing choice in overtime management, ensuring fair work compensation and safeguarding health rights. Deputy Minister Lee Seong-hee emphasized the government\u2019s position that it would not unilaterally push these reforms, underscoring the importance of forming a national consensus through labor-management-government dialogue. The ministry also plans to support small and medium-sized enterprises in managing working hours effectively, including the provision of a free attendance record management program.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Why It Matters<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The labor ministry\u2019s decision to adjust the 52-hour workweek while keeping its overall structure is a response to the country\u2019s deep-seated work culture issues. South Koreans <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/data.oecd.org\/emp\/hours-worked.htm\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">worked<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> an average of 1,915 hours in 2021 \u2014 about 199 hours more than the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development average. This announcement \u2014 essentially a compromise from President Yoon Suk-yeol\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/03\/govt-overhauls-52-hour-workweek-system-to-provide-more-flexibility\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">initial pledge<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> proposal to extend work hours to 69 per week \u2014 comes amid <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/03\/yoon-orders-government-to-review-proposal-for-longer-workweek\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">significant pressure<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> from younger generations and labor unions, who have strongly opposed the initial proposal. Their opposition is rooted in fears of worsening work-life balance.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The South Korean government\u2019s approach raises questions about its effectiveness in addressing the demands for better work-life balance and the expectations of labor-intensive businesses. This balancing act reflects an attempt to appease a workforce increasingly vocal about mental health and quality of life while also catering to business interests lobbying for longer working hours to boost productivity. The announcement comes against the backdrop of looming parliamentary elections. It remains to be seen if the government\u2019s strategy will adequately address the underlying issues workers and businesses advocate or if it will boost Yoon or the ruling People Power Party\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gallup.co.kr\/gallupdb\/reportContent.asp?seqNo=1429\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">approval ratings<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"content-tags\"><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/tag\/business-economy\/\"><span class=\"tag\">Business &amp; Economy<\/span><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/tag\/culture-society\/\"><span class=\"tag\">Culture &amp; Society<\/span><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/tag\/domestic-politics\/\"><span class=\"tag\">Domestic Politics<\/span><\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>South Korea\u2019s Ministry of Employment and Labor announced the findings of its \u201cSurvey on Working Hours.\u201d The survey revealed that while the 52-hour workweek (comprising 40 legal hours plus 12 hours overtime) is largely effective, some industries and occupations continue to struggle. Public opinion was split; 48.2% acknowledged its benefit in reducing long working hours, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10407,"featured_media":2202737,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[24,25,27],"class_list":["post-2202736","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-briefings","tag-business-economy","tag-culture-society","tag-domestic-politics"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>South Korea\u2019s plan to modify 52-hour workweek cap likely to meet mixed reactions - KOREA PRO<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/11\/south-koreas-plan-to-modify-52-hour-workweek-cap-likely-to-meet-mixed-reactions\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"South Korea\u2019s plan to modify 52-hour workweek cap likely to meet mixed reactions - KOREA PRO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"South Korea\u2019s Ministry of Employment and Labor announced the findings of its \u201cSurvey on Working Hours.\u201d The survey revealed that while the 52-hour workweek (comprising 40 legal hours plus 12 hours overtime) is largely effective, some industries and occupations continue to struggle. Public opinion was split; 48.2% acknowledged its benefit in reducing long working hours, [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/11\/south-koreas-plan-to-modify-52-hour-workweek-cap-likely-to-meet-mixed-reactions\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"KOREA PRO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/nknewsorg\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-11-13T23:00:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-11-13T07:43:47+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2023\/11\/eb-3.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"johnleenknews\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@southkoreapro\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@southkoreapro\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"KOREA PRO\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/11\/south-koreas-plan-to-modify-52-hour-workweek-cap-likely-to-meet-mixed-reactions\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/11\/south-koreas-plan-to-modify-52-hour-workweek-cap-likely-to-meet-mixed-reactions\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"johnleenknews\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/person\/b9766dba611638edc06a6e0b7078714d\"},\"headline\":\"South Korea\u2019s plan to modify 52-hour workweek cap likely to meet mixed reactions\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-11-13T23:00:50+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-11-13T07:43:47+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/11\/south-koreas-plan-to-modify-52-hour-workweek-cap-likely-to-meet-mixed-reactions\/\"},\"wordCount\":404,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/11\/south-koreas-plan-to-modify-52-hour-workweek-cap-likely-to-meet-mixed-reactions\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2023\/11\/eb-3.png\",\"keywords\":[\"Business &amp; 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