[Changes in the Second Half of 2022] Mandatory Installation of Workplace Rest Facilities... Implementation of Sick Leave Benefits

Starting in August, all workplaces will be required to install rest facilities for workers. Additionally, from next month, industrial accident insurance will also apply to distribution and delivery drivers, and a pre-designated management system to improve the profitability of retirement pensions will be introduced.

The government published "Changes Starting from the Second Half of 2022" on the 30th, summarizing the system and regulatory changes effective from the second half of this year.

First, from August 18, the installation of rest facilities will be mandatory at all workplaces, and workplaces above a certain size that fail to install rest facilities or comply with installation standards will face fines of up to 15 million KRW.

From next month, industrial accident insurance will additionally apply to distribution and delivery drivers, parcel trunk and feeder drivers, and cargo truck owners transporting specific items such as car carriers and grains. Previously, due to the exclusivity requirement for special employment types under industrial accident insurance, workers providing labor to multiple businesses were not covered, but the Industrial Accident Insurance Act has been amended to abolish the exclusivity requirement, thereby expanding coverage.

From the 12th of next month, a pre-designated management system (default option) will be introduced for retirement pension plans (DC and IRP). This system manages retirement pensions according to a method pre-designated by the subscriber if no management instructions are given by the subscriber.

Retirement pension providers prepare pre-designated management methods through prior review by a committee under the Minister of Employment and Labor and approval by the Ministry of Employment and Labor, and these methods can consist of principal-guaranteed products or collective investment securities (funds). The government expects this to increase profitability and contribute to expanding workers' retirement income.

Additionally, the government has legally elevated the principle of direct, secret, and anonymous voting when electing worker representatives to labor-management councils in workplaces without a majority labor union, and made it mandatory for more than half of the workers to participate in such elections to enhance the representativeness and democratic legitimacy of worker representatives. This will apply to new worker representative elections after the law takes effect on December 11.

Furthermore, to improve labor conditions for platform workers, the government will support customized workplace improvement projects for platform companies and expand the target audience for "K-Digital Basic Competency Training" to enhance digital literacy nationwide.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare will expand customized benefit guidance nationwide from September, analyzing individuals' and households' income, assets, and personal characteristics to proactively inform them of welfare services they can receive. Citizens who wish can receive benefit information through online or in-person applications.

From next month, a new monthly support of 1 million KRW will be provided to foster parents protecting children awaiting adoption to ensure more careful protection until the children meet their new families.

Also, to eliminate blind spots in the National Pension, support for pension insurance premiums will be introduced for low-income regional subscribers. Among regional subscribers exempt from premium payments, those who resume payment will receive 50% of the pension insurance premium on their reported income (up to 45,000 KRW per month) for up to 12 months.

For economically vulnerable low-income groups, emergency welfare support living allowance rates will be increased by 16-19%. A deduction limit for residential property will be established, and the deduction rate for living preparation funds will also be raised.

Moreover, the government will implement the first phase of a Korean-style sickness allowance pilot project to allow workers to take sick leave without financial worries. Currently, among the 38 OECD countries, all except Korea and the United States already operate sickness allowance systems.

The pilot project will be conducted in Jongno, Seoul; Bucheon, Gyeonggi; Cheonan, Chungnam; Pohang, Gyeongbuk; Changwon, Gyeongnam; and Suncheon, Jeonnam. Employed persons in these areas who cannot work due to illness or injury will receive a sickness allowance of 43,960 KRW per day during their absence.

The government plans to invest up to 14 billion KRW over the next four years to support medical technology development research projects in preparation for blood shortages in the post-COVID era. Due to low birth rates and aging, the main blood donor groups in their teens and twenties are expected to continue declining. The government will support clinical research and prospective cohort studies to verify the efficacy and safety of transfusion alternatives and appropriate transfusion practices.