Retirement Pay of 5 Billion Won... The Heartbreaking Reality for South Korean Youth

Unimaginable Severance Pay
2030s' Self-Doubt: "What Have I Done So Far?"
Quit Job After 3 Years, Got 20 Million Won
Amount Beyond Common Sense Sparks Not Just Anger but Emptiness
Even Sense of Purpose Disappears

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] Mr. Lee (31), who is preparing to start a business, quit his job of three years earlier this month. The severance pay he received was about 20 million won. Mr. Lee felt a great sense of deprivation upon hearing that the son of independent lawmaker Kwak Sang-do worked at Hwacheon Daeyu Asset Management (Hwacheon Daeyu) for about six years and received 5 billion won as severance pay upon retirement. Although the length of service and work intensity may differ, the gap between 20 million won and 5 billion won is too large. Mr. Lee said, "I often worked overtime and did my best while working at the company, but when I look at the money that went into my bank account, I feel like I wasted three years," adding, "Someone's son received severance pay in his early 30s that I could never earn even if I worked my whole life, and I wonder what I have been doing until now."

The fact that lawmaker Kwak’s son received 5 billion won in severance pay from Hwacheon Daeyu has intensified the sense of deprivation and anger among young people. While some suspect that he received special favors because he is the son of a member of the National Assembly, people in their 20s and 30s lament, "Our society still seems far from 'fairness'." Although lawmaker Kwak and his son have issued explanations, criticism has not diminished, and parodies satirizing the issue continue to appear online.

Office worker Choi Yoo-jin (35) felt diminished after seeing this controversy, as she struggles to save on housing costs by renting a jeonse (lump-sum deposit lease) house. She said, "Hearing about the 5 billion won severance pay made me feel sorry for myself, struggling to save my salary and take out loans just to move from monthly rent to jeonse," adding, "I have been saving every penny to prepare for the future, but I wonder what it all means." Office worker Park (29) said, "Seeing severance pay that is beyond common sense made me feel not just angry but also empty," adding, "I have no money or connections, so I feel depressed thinking I will have to live as a lifelong worker ant."

Despite Hwacheon Daeyu’s explanation that a significant portion of the money received by lawmaker Kwak’s son was consolation money for industrial accidents, young people expressed outrage. It is known that Kwak’s son never formally applied for industrial accident compensation through the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service, and some argue that the company’s voluntary payment of industrial accident consolation money is a special favor. Office worker Kim (33) said, "I understand that ordinary workers find it difficult to receive compensation or treatment costs unless the industrial accident is severe," adding, "Companies tend to keep such matters quiet, so it is hard to understand why they gave tens of billions of won."

Job seekers sighed, saying, "Is this another case of parental privilege?" Kang (25), a senior at a university in the Seoul metropolitan area, said, "It is said that he got into Hwacheon Daeyu through his father’s introduction, and in our society, meeting the right parents seems to be an important factor for success," adding, "Some people cannot save that much money even if they work their whole lives, while others can earn it in six years, which makes me lose my sense of purpose for getting a job." Professor Lim Myung-ho of Dankook University’s Department of Psychology explained, "Ordinary workers and the middle class find it difficult to handle 5 billion won even if they work their whole lives, so they inevitably feel alienation and deprivation," adding, "Since the economic situation of self-employed people, office workers, and job seekers has worsened due to COVID-19, this sense of deprivation is expected to persist for a long time."