Large Corporations' Disability Employment Rate at 2.38%... Daewoo E&C and Others at 0% Range

Only 4 out of 33 Large Business Groups Comply with Employment Rate
Major Groups like Kumho Asiana at 2% Level
Samsung Electronics Paid 74.8 Billion KRW in Employment Charges Over 5 Years, Ranked 1st
Song Okju Urges "Compliance with Employment Rate Over Payment of Charges"

Song Ok-ju, member of the Democratic Party of Korea. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] It has been revealed that the mandatory employment rate for persons with disabilities among domestic large business groups remains in the 2% range.

According to data received on the 28th from the Ministry of Employment and Labor by Song Okju, a member of the National Assembly's Environment and Labor Committee from the Democratic Party of Korea, the mandatory employment rate for persons with disabilities among the top domestic large business groups is 2.38%, with only 4 out of 33 large business groups complying with the employment obligation. The groups that met the mandatory employment rate for persons with disabilities included Lotte, Hyundai Department Store, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, and POSCO.

According to the Act on the Promotion of Employment of Persons with Disabilities, employers with 50 or more regular employees must employ persons with disabilities at a rate of at least 3.1% of their regular workforce.

Source: Office of Song Ok-ju, Democratic Party of Korea

Major large business groups such as Kumho Asiana (1.96%), Samsung (1.93%), Hanwha (1.91%), Harim (1.82%), and Doosan (1.42%) failed to reach even a 2% employment rate for persons with disabilities. Daewoo Construction (0.84%), Daelim (0.8%), and Korea Investment & Finance (0.72%) remained in the 0% range, indicating an urgent need to fulfill their employment obligations for persons with disabilities. Daewoo Construction is a construction company frequently involved in industrial accident fatalities and is closely monitored by the Ministry of Employment and Labor.

The company that paid the highest employment levy for persons with disabilities was Samsung Electronics, which paid 21.4 billion KRW last year and a total of 74.8 billion KRW over the past five years. It ranked first for five consecutive years. SK Hynix paid 28.4 billion KRW, Korean Air 27.3 billion KRW, Kookmin Bank 20.2 billion KRW, Hana Bank 19.1 billion KRW, Yonsei University 19 billion KRW, Woori Bank 18 billion KRW, LG Electronics 15.2 billion KRW, Shinhan Bank 11.2 billion KRW, and Homeplus 10 billion KRW followed.

Representative Song said, "Many companies still try to resolve the issue by paying the levy rather than employing persons with disabilities," adding, "Large companies, which have relatively more capacity than small and medium enterprises, should make more active efforts to comply with the mandatory employment rate for persons with disabilities."