"During Winter Break, I Bring My Child to Work"... A Company That Set Up a Classroom in the Office [K Population Strategy]

(12) Konibaierin, Creator of 'Office Day'
Children Allowed at In-Person Meetings... Also Known as a 'Cool Mom'

Editor's NoteThe key to solving South Korea's population problem lies within companies. A workplace culture that evaluates employees based on their work regardless of gender and a family-friendly environment are crucial to addressing the K population issue. While low birth rates are influenced by multiple complex factors, it is important to ensure that workplace burdens do not become obstacles that make people hesitate to have children. Asia Economy visited companies leading family-friendly policies to identify the factors that helped these systems settle firmly, and plans to explore various solutions with companies that face practical challenges. Through this, we aim to encourage change starting from companies and analyze the government's role in enabling this. We listen closely to voices emphasizing that company culture and atmosphere, which reduce psychological burdens more than financial support, are key, and propose alternatives from various perspectives.

"Is this mom's company?"

At 1 p.m. on January 2, the first business day of 2024, eight children appeared at the office of Cony Byerin (Cony) in Oksu-dong, Seongdong-gu, Seoul. It was a ‘Bring Your Child to Office Day’ where working mom employees came to the office with their children. This event was held for the first time by the company as childcare gaps arose due to winter vacation and daycare closures, causing concerns among employees.

On December 22 last year, employees are having an in-person meeting at the Cony By Erin office in Oksu-dong, Seongdong-gu, Seoul.

The eight children, ranging from 5 years old to first grade in elementary school, spent the time from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. following a packed schedule while their moms worked in the office.

On this day, a specially invited visiting teacher and the children made air gliders by hand and decorated them with colored pencils, flying them around the office. During breaks, they had snacks together with their moms. Additionally, in collaboration with an art academy near the office, the children spent time drawing pictures together. After returning from the academy to the office, the children had dinner together with their moms who left work at 6 p.m., then headed home.

The core of this event was to allow employee moms to separate work and childcare. Although moms and children were in the same office space, they did not do work and childcare simultaneously. A separate program was prepared for the children. When they crossed paths in the office, they greeted each other warmly, and participants noted that the children had the image of their “cool mom at work” firmly imprinted in their minds.

Cony Byerin planned the office day as a pilot program to provide working moms and dads with an additional option to manage work and childcare simultaneously. Although a full remote work system allows employees to perform all tasks from home, there are moments when face-to-face meetings with colleagues are necessary or when no one is available at home to provide care during remote work, creating a need for a separate space.

Song Myung-jin, Cony Brand Group Lead, who has a daughter entering second grade this year, said, "If offline meetings make drop-off and pick-up times difficult, I plan to bring my child to the office," adding, "Since the situation of children visiting is designed as a basic option, there is less burden about bringing them."

This event was announced to employees when Cony, which had been fully remote, established an office in December last year, six years after its founding. CEO Lim I-rang said, "When designing the office interior, we paid attention to ensure that members could bring their children briefly if needed without any issues," and added, "Office Day will be operated as a program that can be used when childcare gaps arise, based on members’ feedback."

Special Coverage Team 'K Population Strategy - Gender Equality is the Answer'

Reporters: Kim Yuri, Lee Hyun-joo, Jung Hyun-jin, Boo Ae-ri, Gong Byung-seon, Park Joon-i, Song Seung-seop
Editor: Kim Pil-su, Economy & Finance