{"id":2208711,"date":"2025-03-13T08:00:19","date_gmt":"2025-03-12T23:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?p=2208711"},"modified":"2025-03-12T15:09:30","modified_gmt":"2025-03-12T06:09:30","slug":"south-korea-extends-chip-rd-work-hours-but-next-government-could-reverse-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2025\/03\/south-korea-extends-chip-rd-work-hours-but-next-government-could-reverse-it\/","title":{"rendered":"South Korea extends chip R&#038;D work hours, but next government could reverse it"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">South Korea\u2019s finance ministry <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.moef.go.kr\/nw\/nes\/detailNesDtaView.do?searchBbsId1=MOSFBBS_000000000028&amp;searchNttId1=MOSF_000000000073018&amp;menuNo=4010100\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">announced<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> on Wednesday that it will extend the special approval period for semiconductor research and development (R&amp;D) working hours from three months to six months to strengthen South Korea\u2019s position in the global semiconductor race. The new policy will allow semiconductor firms to maintain 64-hour workweeks for the first three months, with a reduced limit of 60 hours for the remaining period. The reapproval process will be streamlined, and mandatory health checks will be introduced to protect workers\u2019 welfare.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The decision comes after the broader Semiconductor Special Act, which sought to permanently lift work hour caps for semiconductor R&amp;D, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2025\/02\/south-korea-passes-k-chips-act-but-semiconductor-policy-still-in-limbo\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">stalled<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> last month after facing political opposition. By using the existing special approval system under the Ministry of Employment and Labor, the government is bypassing legislative gridlock to give semiconductor firms more operational flexibility.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>WHY IT MATTERS<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The finance ministry\u2019s move is a tactical workaround to South Korea\u2019s legislative deadlock on semiconductor labor policy. The Semiconductor Special Act failed to pass due to opposition from the Democratic Party (DP), which took issue with the bill\u2019s exemption to the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/11\/south-koreas-plan-to-modify-52-hour-workweek-cap-likely-to-meet-mixed-reactions\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">52-hour workweek rule<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for semiconductor workers. By using administrative authority rather than legislation, the government is sidestepping political resistance to quickly support the semiconductor industry, giving chipmakers flexibility to accelerate R&amp;D amid rising global competition.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, this policy will likely be short-lived. President Yoon Suk-yeol\u2019s impeachment trial is nearing its conclusion, and if the Constitutional Court upholds his removal, a new presidential election will follow within 60 days. DP leader Lee Jae-myung, the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2025\/03\/south-korean-opposition-regains-momentum-but-yoon-arrest-ruling-muddies-outlook\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">frontrunner<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in the race, leads a party that opposed the Semiconductor Special Act\u2019s work-hour exemptions. Backed by a 170-seat majority in the National Assembly, Lee could easily reverse the finance ministry\u2019s decision if elected.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If Lee reverses the work-hour exemption, South Korean chipmakers could face a double blow \u2014 reduced R&amp;D flexibility at home and diminished access to the U.S. market, especially as U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2025\/03\/trump-targets-south-korea-on-trade-tariffs-and-security-in-fiery-speech\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">reciprocal tariffs<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> are set to be implemented on April 2.<\/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\/domestic-politics\/\"><span class=\"tag\">Domestic Politics<\/span><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/tag\/technology-cyber\/\"><span class=\"tag\">Technology &amp; Cyber<\/span><\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>South Korea\u2019s finance ministry announced on Wednesday that it will extend the special approval period for semiconductor research and development (R&amp;D) working hours from three months to six months to strengthen South Korea\u2019s position in the global semiconductor race. The new policy will allow semiconductor firms to maintain 64-hour workweeks for the first three months, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10407,"featured_media":2208712,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[24,27,29],"class_list":["post-2208711","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-briefings","tag-business-economy","tag-domestic-politics","tag-technology-cyber"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>South Korea extends chip R&amp;D work hours, but next government could reverse it - 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\/2025\/03\/south-korea-extends-chip-rd-work-hours-but-next-government-could-reverse-it\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"South Korea extends chip R&amp;D work hours, but next government could reverse it - Korea Pro\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"South Korea\u2019s finance ministry announced on Wednesday that it will extend the special approval period for semiconductor research and development (R&amp;D) working hours from three months to six months to strengthen South Korea\u2019s position in the global semiconductor race. The new policy will allow semiconductor firms to maintain 64-hour workweeks for the first three months, [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2025\/03\/south-korea-extends-chip-rd-work-hours-but-next-government-could-reverse-it\/\" \/>\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=\"2025-03-12T23:00:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-03-12T06:09:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2025\/03\/eb-8.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1870\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1000\" \/>\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\/2025\/03\/south-korea-extends-chip-rd-work-hours-but-next-government-could-reverse-it\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2025\/03\/south-korea-extends-chip-rd-work-hours-but-next-government-could-reverse-it\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"johnleenknews\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/person\/628fb985625ed7bb2c475bed33f6445f\"},\"headline\":\"South Korea extends chip R&#038;D work hours, but next government could reverse it\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-03-12T23:00:19+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-03-12T06:09:30+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2025\/03\/south-korea-extends-chip-rd-work-hours-but-next-government-could-reverse-it\/\"},\"wordCount\":360,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2025\/03\/south-korea-extends-chip-rd-work-hours-but-next-government-could-reverse-it\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2025\/03\/eb-8.png\",\"keywords\":[\"Business &amp; 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