[Non-Marriage Era] Employees Who Do Not Marry Also Receive Congratulatory Money and Bereavement Leave

⑦ LG Uplus-Lush Korea Implement Non-Marriage Welfare
Support Vacation with Basic Salary for Non-Marriage Declaration on Bulletin Board
Social Prejudice Persists, Non-Marriage Declarants Burdened by Personal Information Exposure

Editor's NoteIn a world where marriage is not mandatory, encountering those who choose to remain single is no longer a strange experience. Who chooses to remain single, and why? The issue is not only society's biased views surrounding singlehood. There are also vague perspectives that regard it as an object of admiration. We diagnose the pros and cons of the so-called 'single life.'

Although corporate welfare systems are advancing day by day, they remain a distant story for single employees. Welfare benefits are still primarily focused on married employees with families. Both social policies and various welfare benefits at companies require passing through the 'rite of passage' of marriage to be enjoyed.

In the face of major life events, the presence of solo individuals is faint. Single employees without dependents often miss out on in-house welfare such as marriage congratulatory money of 500,000 KRW, paid honeymoon leave, and 100% tuition support for university-age children, as well as year-end tax settlement benefits often called the '13th-month salary.' Even though they do the same work at the same company, they are excluded from welfare benefits simply because they are unmarried or have no children.

However, the formula 'marriage = necessity' has begun to crack. Singlehood is emerging as a viable choice. As the number of single-person households increases annually, voices calling for the expansion of welfare systems that effectively serve as income for single employees are growing louder. Change has already begun.

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LG Uplus became the first major domestic corporation to take a stand for single employees. They decided to provide congratulatory support money and special paid leave to employees who declare themselves single, on par with married employees.

The method to declare singlehood is simple. Employees just need to post a 'single declaration' on the company bulletin board. Upon declaring singlehood, they receive 100% of their base salary and 5 days of paid leave.

However, not all employees are eligible. Initially, the single congratulatory support was known to be for employees with over 5 years of service and aged 38 or older, but the system is designed to gradually expand the eligible recipients over three years starting in 2023 to ensure stable establishment. In the first year of implementation, this year, the target is employees aged 43 or older with over 10 years of service. In 2024, it will be employees aged 40 or older with over 7 years of service. The system will expand to employees aged 38 or older with over 5 years of service from 2025 onward.

According to LG Uplus, employee satisfaction with the single welfare system is high. The 'single declarations' posted on the company bulletin board received numerous congratulatory and supportive comments from other employees.

The single welfare system was completed after much deliberation between the labor union and management. It is a response to the increasing number of employees pursuing diverse lifestyles and their calls for change.

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Handmade cosmetics brand Lush Korea holds a 'Single Declaration Day' once a year. Lush Korea is a pioneer in domestic single welfare systems, having introduced the 'single declaration application' welfare system in June 2017. They expanded the scope of welfare benefits from being centered on married employees to include single employees as well, respecting individual choices and diversity.

Any employee with over 5 years of service can apply for the single declaration. Upon declaring singlehood, they receive 500,000 KRW as congratulatory money and 10 days of paid leave for family events, matching the benefits given to married employees. From 2017 to 2022, a total of 15 employees declared themselves single.

Lush Korea also offers a 'pet allowance.' Similar to childcare allowances given to employees who have children, single employees with pets receive a monthly pet allowance of 50,000 KRW. In the event of a pet's death, they can take one day of paid leave. This is a thoughtful consideration of the emotional bond between single employees and their pets.

The single declaration system at Lush Korea has also received positive internal feedback. A Lush Korea representative said, "Since Lush conducts various human rights campaigns, this welfare system aligns best with the brand's direction. Most opinions were that it is a 'Lush-style welfare system.'" They added, "There are also comments that it is 'fresh' and 'new.'"

Kim (40), an employee at Lush Korea, said, "Just working at a company that accepts my lifestyle as it is gives me great motivation." After declaring singlehood, he received congratulatory money from colleagues and took a two-week single leave. He is now also receiving the pet allowance. He said, "My colleagues have known for a long time that I am a single advocate, so when the company introduced the single declaration system, they were as happy as if it were their own matter."

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However, except for Kim, other employees who declared singlehood at their companies declined interviews, citing reluctance to appear in the media. Some even delete their 'single declarations' posted on the company bulletin board. Perhaps due to this atmosphere, LG Uplus stated that while single declarations continue, it is difficult to disclose the exact number of beneficiaries of the system.

This reflects a societal resistance to expanding welfare for single employees. As major corporations began introducing single welfare systems this year, some have raised controversies about 'encouraging singlehood.' There are concerns that supporting single employees might promote singlehood amid serious low birth rates. Prejudice against singlehood still operates.

However, welfare for single employees aims to provide equal compensation to those who have been marginalized so far. It means guaranteeing individual diversity, in other words, the right not to choose marriage. An LG Uplus representative said, "In fact, married employees receive more benefits," adding, "We provide two years of parental leave and support systems for employees facing infertility."

Criticism also arises against the view that singles are the root cause of low birth rates. The belief that an increase in singlehood leads to low birth rates is a typical misunderstanding. As of 2020, the proportion of single-person households in France and Sweden was 45.4% and 37.8%, respectively, higher than in Korea, but their total fertility rates were 1.8 and 1.66, respectively, higher than Korea's 0.78 in 2022. This makes it difficult to definitively blame singlehood for low birth rates.

Hong Jaehee, author of 'The Birth of the First Generation of Singles,' sharply points out that singlehood is a choice based on the environment.

"If 100 trillion KRW has been spent over the past 10 years without increasing the birth rate, it is a complete failure of policy. The problem lies in the approach itself... Should we have children out of love for the country and for the nation? What kind of ridiculous idea is that?"