"Married, Pregnant, and Resigned Within Two Months of Joining... Received All the Congratulatory Money"

A New Employee Who Distributed Wedding Invitations Right After Joining
Resigned Immediately After Returning from Honeymoon
Average Congratulatory Money Amounts: 80,000 Won and 110,000 Won

A story has emerged about a new employee who got married less than a month after joining the company, went on a honeymoon, and then resigned claiming to be pregnant.

A variety show satirizing immature new employees in the workplace. The photo is not directly related to the article content.
[Photo by Coupang Play 'SNL']

On the 10th, a post titled "Marriage one month after joining, then resignation one month later" was uploaded on an online community. The author, Mr. A, who is currently working as an office worker, began by saying, "Two months ago, a new employee joined and immediately started handing out wedding invitations."

According to Mr. A, the new employee, Mr. B, who announced his marriage right after joining, invited his coworkers to his wedding. Although it was puzzling, since they would be working together in the future, Mr. A and his colleagues attended Mr. B's wedding and gave congratulatory money. Also, Mr. A’s company provides a welfare benefit called a "wedding congratulatory fund" to employees who get married, and Mr. B applied for and received this benefit immediately after joining.

Mr. B’s wedding took place one month after he joined the company. After returning from the honeymoon, Mr. B suddenly notified the company of his resignation, saying, "I have a honeymoon baby." Mr. A said, "There may be personal circumstances, but I keep thinking, 'Was this planned?'" and added, "If you are going to resign so abruptly, you should at least pretend to be sorry, but he showed no such expression."

Netizens who read the story responded with comments such as, "Maybe it wasn’t planned, but it’s creepy," "I think it’s shameless," "It seems like he just found a short-term part-time job before marriage," "This is why companies have a culture of not attending congratulatory events until a few months after joining," "He took all the congratulatory money and then suddenly resigned, that’s really mean," and "Because of people like this, sincere new employees get a bad reputation."

Average Amount of Congratulatory Money... 80,000 KRW if absent, 110,000 KRW if attending

Meanwhile, amid ongoing debates about congratulatory money, Shinhan Bank published the "Financial Life Report of Ordinary People 2024" in April, which includes data on the average amount of congratulatory money. According to the report, the amount of congratulatory money given at acquaintances’ weddings varies depending on attendance and the wedding venue. The most common response for sending money without attending was 50,000 KRW (52.8%), with an average amount of 80,000 KRW. For those attending in person, 100,000 KRW was the most common (67.4%), with an average amount of 110,000 KRW.

The social relationship was the most influential factor in deciding the amount of congratulatory money. Among people in their 20s and 30s, 11.7% said that the way they received the wedding invitation was an important criterion for determining the amount, which was higher than other age groups. Among those aged 40 and above, 31.3% responded that they would only give as much as they received.

Regardless of age, most people preferred to attend the congratulatory events of close friends and acquaintances in person, while for friends and acquaintances they only occasionally contacted, the most common opinion was to send money without attending. By age group, this was ▲59.2% for those in their 20s and 30s and ▲65.7% for those aged 40 and above.