Employment Minister: "Labor Reform Phase 2... Tripartite Commission to Be Formed Next Month"

Minister Lee Jeong-sik's Meeting in Sejong
"Announcement of Foreign Caregiver Introduction Soon"

Lee Jeong-sik, Minister of Employment and Labor, stated, "Last year was the inaugural year of labor reform, including the establishment of labor rule of law," and added, "Based on these achievements, we will steadily advance the second phase of labor reform this year."

Minister of Employment and Labor Lee Jeong-sik held a casual meeting with reporters at the Employment Ministry press room in the Sejong Government Complex on the 27th, explaining plans to promote labor reform tasks this year.
[Photo by Ministry of Employment and Labor]

At a press briefing held at the Government Complex Sejong on the afternoon of the 27th, Minister Lee self-assessed, "Last year’s labor reform had its own achievements," highlighting key accomplishments such as a reemployment rate in the 30% range among unemployment benefit recipients and a reduction of serious industrial accident fatalities to the 500s.

He continued, "2024 is the second phase of labor reform," and said, "We will establish the rule of law at the workplace and improve systems based on social dialogue through the Tripartite Commission, while promoting government policies accordingly."

Regarding the impact of the April general election results on institutional improvements related to labor reform, he said, "Since these are urgent issues that all labor, management, and government parties want to resolve, we will respect these aspects depending on how the National Assembly is formed," adding, "The government will conduct social dialogue and dialogue with the legislative branch separately, according to the composition of the National Assembly."

The Tripartite Commission, a social dialogue body among labor, management, and government, held its first plenary meeting under the Yoon Suk-yeol administration on the 6th and officially commenced social dialogue. Detailed issues such as working hours, continuous employment, and dual structure improvements are to be discussed in three subcommittees: the 'Work-Life Balance Committee,' the 'Committee on Responding to Demographic Changes and Continuous Employment,' and the 'Special Committee for Sustainable Jobs and Future Generations.' However, these committees have yet to be formed.

Minister Lee noted, "Since social dialogue involves significant differences in labor and management positions and the basic principles and directions of the dialogue are very dynamic, it would be strange if everything went according to plan," and predicted that the formation of these committees would be announced around early April.

Regarding the upcoming discussions on next year’s minimum wage, Minister Lee interpreted the Bank of Korea’s proposal to apply differentiated minimum wages to alleviate the shortage of care service workers as "a solution proposed from their perspective to address the low birthrate issue, and it is not an official stance of the Bank of Korea."

He added, "The Minimum Wage Commission has its own decision-making criteria, principles, and methods. Considering various factors, the commission will reach a conclusion with high acceptability," and also stated that the government is currently selecting new public interest members for the Minimum Wage Commission according to established criteria.

Regarding the delay in introducing foreign domestic workers, he explained, "The circumstances in sending countries, such as the Philippines, the largest sending country, are complicated," and said, "We have consulted with the Philippines and are also in talks with several other countries including Sri Lanka." He further added, "We will soon finalize a clear schedule and announce the policy implementation timeline as early as possible."