Top Reason for Unclaimed Unemployment Benefits: 'Not Enrolled in Employment Insurance'
Second Most Common: Classified as Voluntary Unemployment Despite Meeting Eligibility
Workplace Bullying 119: "All Are Illegal Acts... System Improvement Needed"
#Including the CEO, a total of three people work at the company where I have been employed for 1 year and 4 months. At a meeting held one week before this month's payday, the CEO said that the company's situation has worsened, so this month's salary might be delayed and could continue to be delayed in the future. When the CEO asked the employees what they would do, I replied, "If the salary is delayed, I cannot work," and asked if I could receive unemployment benefits since I would be quitting due to the company's poor situation. However, the CEO said, "There would be disadvantages to the company, so it cannot be provided." (A case reported to Workplace Bullying 119 last month)
It was found that 69% of workers who experienced involuntary resignation in the past year did not receive unemployment benefits. The top two reasons for not receiving unemployment benefits despite involuntary resignation were 'not enrolled in employment insurance' and 'classified as voluntary unemployment despite meeting eligibility requirements.'
On the 27th, Workplace Bullying 119 and the Beautiful Foundation commissioned the public opinion research agency 'Embrain Public' to conduct a survey of 1,000 workers nationwide aged 19 and older (600 regular workers and 400 non-regular workers). The results showed that 16.7% had experienced job loss unrelated to their own will in the past year. The most common reason for job loss was contract expiration at 31.7%, followed by ▲recommended resignation, layoffs, voluntary retirement at 28.1%, and ▲involuntary dismissal at 21%. The survey was conducted from the 2nd to the 10th of the month.
Among the 134 people who experienced involuntary resignation, 68.7% answered that they had not received unemployment benefits in the past year. The more unstable the working conditions, the higher the number of respondents who did not receive unemployment benefits. For regular workers, it was 65.6%, but for non-regular workers, 69.6% did not receive unemployment benefits. Among workers working less than 15 hours, 80.8% did not receive benefits, and among workers earning less than 1.5 million KRW per month and those working at businesses with fewer than 5 employees, 90.9% and 88.9% respectively did not receive unemployment benefits.
The most frequently cited reason for not receiving unemployment benefits was 'not enrolled in employment insurance (38%).' For the same reason, the rates of not receiving unemployment benefits were more than 10 percentage points higher than the average among those working less than 15 hours (61.9%), earning less than 1.5 million KRW (53.3%), working at businesses with fewer than 5 employees (46.9%), women (50.9%), non-regular workers (45.1%), and non-office workers (41.7%).
The next most common reason was being classified as voluntary unemployment despite meeting eligibility requirements, accounting for 23.9%. Among workers at businesses with fewer than 5 employees, 28.1% quit their jobs for this reason, which was twice the response rate of workers at businesses with 300 or more employees (14.3%).
Jo Young-hoon, a labor attorney at Workplace Bullying 119, said, "It has been revealed that a significant number of involuntary job leavers who are eligible for unemployment benefits are not receiving the benefits they should." He added, "Reasons such as employers not enrolling in employment insurance and falsifying reasons for job separation were cited, all of which are illegal acts." Jo further stated, "This survey result shows what the government should focus on to improve the unemployment benefits system."
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