"Are Small Business Owners Being Asked to Become Lawbreakers in the New Year?" Demand to Extend 8-Hour Additional Overtime Work System

If the Labor Standards Act is not amended
52-hour workweek applied from January next year
Existence of businesses with fewer than 30 employees at risk
"Both labor and management want it," emphasized

[Image source=Yonhap News]

"The 8-hour additional extended work system is not a scheme to exploit workers through long working hours. It is a path for workers who want to increase their income even if they work extra hours."

Kim Chang-woong, CEO of a construction machinery maintenance business in Seo-gu, Incheon, argued that "the 52-hour workweek system is detached from the reality of our industry." He explained that additional work is inevitable when repairing machines used at construction sites such as excavators, bulldozers, and forklifts. He said, "You cannot just leave work halfway while repairing machines that need to be deployed to the site the next morning." He also appealed that since 2 to 3 people form a team to work, it is not easy to comply with the 52-hour workweek system amid an already insufficient workforce. CEO Kim stated, "Due to the 52-hour workweek system, workers are now forced to take night delivery part-time jobs," adding, "Working hours should be guaranteed and appropriate wages must be maintained."

About ten days before the termination of the 8-hour additional extended work system, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have urged the extension of the system. The 8-hour additional extended work system is a temporary allowance for workplaces with fewer than 30 employees to work an additional 8 hours per week beyond the 52-hour workweek system to ease the burden of its application. However, the industry claims that forcing small-scale enterprises with fewer than 30 employees to comply with the 52-hour workweek system from January 1 next year is inappropriate for the characteristics of each industry and premature amid an unstable economic situation.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 21st, 13 SME organizations including the Korea Federation of SMEs, the Korea Mechanical Equipment Construction Association, and the Korea Women Entrepreneurs Association held a press conference at the Federation of SMEs in Yeouido, Seoul, announcing the 'SME sector's position on the sunset of the 8-hour additional extended work system.'

On this day, the SME sector lamented that due to the recent economic downturn, companies with fewer than 30 employees are struggling to maintain the status quo, and workers’ real incomes have significantly decreased due to high inflation and interest rates. They warned that if the 52-hour workweek system is not observed from next year, business owners will become lawbreakers, and reducing production immediately could lead not only to job losses but also to the risk of business closure. They urged the prompt passage of the amendment to the Labor Standards Act, which includes a two-year extension of the sunset for the 8-hour additional extended work system. The bill is currently pending in the Environment and Labor Committee as the ruling and opposition parties continue to clash over budget negotiations.

In their statement, they said, "If the 8-hour additional extended work system disappears, a significant shock is expected at SME sites," adding, "91% of manufacturing businesses with fewer than 30 employees utilize this system, and 75.5% have no countermeasures if the sunset occurs." They continued, "The 52-hour workweek system was introduced for a life with evenings off, but SME workers are now at risk of having their incomes lowered," emphasizing, "Both SME business owners and workers with fewer than 30 employees desperately want the 8-hour additional extended work."

Meanwhile, Lee Young, Minister of SMEs and Startups, met with Hwan Cheol, chairman of the Environment and Labor Committee, on the 19th to request the passage of the bill. Minister Lee said on his Facebook, "Next year, our SME business owners could become lawbreakers, so with a desperate hope to grasp at straws, I have continuously knocked on the door of the chairman’s office of the Environment and Labor Committee, which is not even the standing committee under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups." He added, "It is said that the Environment and Labor Committee’s subcommittee on bills may be held this week," and said, "I earnestly request the committee members to extend the sunset, carrying the hopes of SME business owners."