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[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Ju-yeon] In the upcoming April Seoul mayoral by-election, Democratic Party preliminary candidate Park Young-sun and Transition Korea candidate Cho Jung-hoon will engage in a policy debate regarding working hours. Both candidates agree on the need to shorten the current five-day workweek, but Park proposes a 4.5-day workweek, while Cho advocates for a 4-day workweek, marking a key difference. Additionally, the reasons each has cited for shortening working hours reveal distinctly different goals, making this another point worth noting.
Former Minister Park Young-sun, a candidate for the Democratic Party of Korea's Seoul mayoral primary, is announcing a healthcare policy focused on one-stop healthcare at Anguk Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 16th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@
According to Park’s camp on the 21st, during the policy debate scheduled for 7 p.m. on the 22nd, Park will explain her vision for 'Seoul’s Great Transformation ? 21-Minute City Seoul' aimed at the next 100 years, and engage in an in-depth discussion with Cho on the 4.5-day workweek policy and the subscription economy.
In particular, the debate is drawing the most attention because Park proposes a 4.5-day workweek, while Cho proposes a 4-day workweek as their respective pledges.
Park plans to emphasize that the 4.5-day workweek is a 'one-stone-four-birds new employment strategy' that reduces youth unemployment, protects workers’ health, revitalizes small and medium-sized enterprises, and promotes startups. She describes it as foundational work supporting innovative economic growth. Specifically, she intends to implement the 4.5-day workweek first in public safety-related institutions under the Seoul city government and encourage its adoption in the private sector.
During a visit to Seoul Station over the Lunar New Year holiday, Park stated, "We will introduce the 4.5-day workweek starting with public institutions responsible for safety." At that time, she said, "I visited railway workers who cannot rest even during the Lunar New Year. Although the four-shift system introduced this year has improved conditions, I believe the 4.5-day workweek should be applied first to public institutions responsible for safety. That is how we can create a safer Seoul," she explained.
In this policy discussion, Park is expected to introduce cases of small and medium-sized enterprises that have improved productivity while implementing the 4.5-day workweek. She is also likely to emphasize that the 4.5-day workweek can help solve youth employment issues.
Jung Joon-hoon, Candidate for Seoul Mayor from the Transition Era Party. / Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@
On the other hand, Cho is advocating for a shorter workweek of four days.
On the 17th, Cho stated on Facebook, "To announce the 4-day workweek pledge, I held five online seminars with related experts," adding, "Through those sessions, we also examined how the 4-day workweek connects with topics such as the Fourth Industrial Revolution, basic income, company size, wage structure reform, labor union reorganization, and equal pay for equal work."
Cho’s approach to the 4-day workweek is notable because he addresses it not only as a job-sharing measure but also from the perspective of 'polarization.'
He said, "Along with income, assets, and risk polarization, I want to overcome what I call the 'polarization of rest,' one of the four major polarizations in our society," emphasizing, "We have prepared supplementary measures so that benefits do not go only to regular employees in large companies or the public sector who have the capacity, but also to day laborers and platform workers who perform piecework."
He added, "Publicizing the 4-day workweek is about proactively preparing for the inevitable future."
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