Used Goods Trading Site Posts Caregiver Job Ad
Netizens Criticize Monthly Salary Below Minimum Wage
A caregiver recruitment post with conditions such as "6 days a week, 12 hours night shift, monthly salary of 1.2 million KRW" has been posted on a secondhand trading site, sparking controversy. On the 18th, various online communities saw the spread of a "slave recruitment" notice that set absurdly low wages compared to the excessive workload. The post stated, "Helping an elderly person with slight mobility difficulties wash and go to bed at night, sleeping together, assisting if they wake up to use the bathroom at night, preparing a simple breakfast in the morning, dressing them, taking them to daycare, and then finishing work." It also added, "Caregiving experience is essential, and please contact if you can take care warmly," and "Preference for those with a vehicle, but not mandatory."
In other words, the duties include washing the elderly person, helping them lie down and sleep, accompanying them to the bathroom at night, preparing breakfast, assisting with meals, getting them ready to go out, and accompanying them to a care facility, all during a 12-hour night shift. Despite working 6 days a week from Monday to Saturday, the monthly salary is listed as 1.2 million KRW, which has drawn criticism for being "less than the minimum wage." Based on the minimum hourly wage (9,860 KRW) and calculated over 288 hours per month, even after deducting weekly holiday pay, the amount should be 2,839,680 KRW. Netizens who saw the post responded with comments such as "Night caregivers start at 4 to 5 million KRW, this is too much," "Don't you know the minimum wage?" and "Are you recruiting slaves?"
However, since this is not an official recruitment site but a secondhand trading site, it seems that such posts that do not guarantee the minimum wage have appeared. In April, a post recruiting a housekeeper on a secondhand trading site sparked controversy by setting an hourly wage of 10,000 KRW to prepare dinner for a family of five within an hour. The author of that post stated that due to raising two daughters aged 4 and 2, they had no time and wrote, "Please come to our house every day at 5 p.m., prepare dinner by 6 p.m., and then leave."
Earlier, a post recruiting a babysitter for a 4-year-old child with a monthly salary of 1.8 million KRW also caused controversy. The duties included preparing dinner and bedtime for the 4-year-old girl, cleaning, operating the washing machine and dryer, and playing with the child. At that time, the post stated 12-hour night shifts, 4 days a week, with a monthly salary of 1.8 million KRW, which sparked criticism.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
