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Work conditions in South Korea

The Active Population in Figures

	2018	2019	2020
Labour Force	28,303,251	28,541,664	28,348,936

Source: International Labour Organization, ILOSTAT database

Source: International Labour Organization, ILOSTAT database

Employed Persons, by Occupation (% of Total Labour Force)	2015
Manufacturing	17.3%
Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles	14.6%
Accommodation and food service activities	8.4%
Construction	7.0%
Education	7.0%
Human health and social work activities	6.8%
Transportation and storage	5.4%
Agriculture, forestry and fishing	5.2%
Administrative and support service activities	4.8%
Professional, scientific and technical activities	4.0%
Public administration and defence; compulsory social security	3.6%
Financial and insurance activities	3.0%
Information and communication	3.0%
Real estate activities	2.1%
Arts, entertainment and recreation	1.6%
Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply	0.4%
Water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities	0.3%
Mining and quarrying	0.1%

For Further Statistics: Korea National Statistical Office
For Further Information About the Labour Market: National Labour Relations Commission (NLRC)
Human Resources Development Service of Korea

Legal Weekly Duration: 40 or 44 hours per week.
Retirement Age: The minimum normal retirement age is 60. Employees may choose to retire early if the work contract or collective agreement permits earlier retirement.
Working Contracts: Employment contracts determine if the employee is part of the regular or non-regular staff. Permanent employees form the regular staff. Among the non-regular staff, there are different types of contract: part-time workers, temporary workers, dispatched workers, fixed-term contract workers and entrusted employees.
Labour Laws: Doing Business: South Korea, to obtain a summary of labour regulations that apply to local entreprises

Minimum Wage: Since January 2022, the legal minimum wage is KRW 9,160 (approximately USD 7) per hour (Minimum Wage Commission).
Average Wage: The average salary in South Korea in 2020 is approximately $41,960 a year, $3,500/month (OECD).
Social Contributions: Social Security Contributions Paid By Employers: •   National Pension: 4.5% (National pension contribution is capped at a monthly salary of KRW 5,240,000)
•   Health Insurance: 3.924% (currently capped at a monthly contribution of KRW 8,203,680 in total)
•   Employment Insurance: from 1.05% to 1.65% (1.15% to 1.75% starting from July 2022), depending on the number of employees and type of industry.
•   Worker’s Compensation Insurance: 0.73% to 18.63% depending on the industry
Social Security Contributions Paid By Employees: •   National Pension: 4.5% (National pension contribution is capped at a monthly salary of KRW 5,240,000)
•   Health Insurance: 3.924% (currently capped at a monthly contribution of KRW 8,203,680 in total)
•   Employment Insurance: 0.80%

Social Dialogue and Involvement of Social Partners: Union negotiations in South Korea take place at the national level, the sector level or the company level.
Unions
Unionisation Rate: 10.1% in 2012.
Labour Regulation Bodies: Ministry of Labour

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