Major Companies Offering 4 Million Won 'Non-Marriage Celebration Money'... Workplace Welfare Discrimination to End

LGU+ Offers Equal Congratulatory Bonus to Non-Married Individuals
7 out of 10 Office Workers Support Non-Married Welfare

Recently, companies have been increasing welfare benefits regardless of marital status or household type, or introducing support systems targeted at unmarried individuals. Last year, Lotte Confectionery eliminated employee wedding anniversary gifts such as bouquets and potted plants. Instead, they expanded welfare points used by all employees.

Among them, LG Uplus became the first major domestic conglomerate this year to provide congratulatory support funds at the same level as married employees to those who declare that they will not get married.

This is to ensure fairness, as unmarried employees receive fewer benefits compared to married ones. Unmarried employees have continuously expressed dissatisfaction with the benefits concentrated only on married employees, such as various congratulatory money and children's tuition fees. In response, LG created a 'Single Support Fund' system to provide unmarried employees with the same benefits as married employees. The amount is approximately 4 million KRW.

According to an LG Uplus official, since the first single declaration post was uploaded on the company bulletin board, six employees have actually declared their single status. Both male and female employees are included.

LG Uplus provides employees who declare 'single status' with 100% of their base salary and 5 days of special paid leave. As personal choices regarding marriage diversify, the purpose is to offer single employees the same benefits as married employees. Employees can express their intention by leaving a message declaring their single status on the company bulletin board.

Increasing Employee Applications for Single Support Fund

LG Uplus has become the first major domestic conglomerate this year to declare that employees who choose not to marry will receive congratulatory support funds at the same level as those given to married employees. The photo is unrelated to the specific content of the article. [Photo source=Pixabay]

Applications from employees for the Single Support Fund, first implemented by LG Uplus, are pouring in. The first person to declare single status is a male employee in his 40s. He said, "Procedurally, I am single, but it does not mean I live alone," adding, "Everyone has their own way of life depending on their circumstances."

Colleagues' interest in the single declaration is also high.

An LG Uplus employee said, "The courage to be the first to declare single status in a conservative space like a company organization is admirable. I hope this opportunity leads to a society where diverse lifestyles are respected," and added, "I am grateful to the first single declarant who took the lead."

The Single Support Fund is available to employees with more than 5 years of service and aged 38 or older. However, if an employee who has received the single support fund later gets married, they will not receive the same benefits given to married employees to prevent duplicate support.

Among the top five domestic conglomerates (Samsung, Hyundai, LG, SK, Lotte), LG Uplus, an LG Group affiliate, was the first to implement this, earning the title of first. It is also the first in the telecommunications industry.

Seven out of Ten Office Workers Support Expansion of Single Welfare

As the population of unmarried individuals continues to rise, a survey revealed that 7 out of 10 office workers agree with expanding in-house benefits that are not based on marriage. The photo is unrelated to the specific content of the article.
[Photo by Asia Economy]

Meanwhile, as the single population continues to increase, a survey found that seven out of ten office workers agree with expanding in-house welfare benefits that do not assume marriage.

The survey was conducted online from December 7 to 14 last year by Workplace Bullying 119, commissioned to the polling agency 'Embrain Public,' targeting 1,000 office workers nationwide aged 19 and older.

When asked whether they think a system is needed that provides unmarried or single employees with the same welfare benefits as married employees, such as paid honeymoon leave and congratulatory support funds, 68.1% of office workers answered "yes." Among those in their 20s, the percentage of "yes" responses was 72.7%, the highest among all age groups.