[2024 Women’s Forum] LG Household & Health Care Extends Parental Leave from 1 to 2 Years... 97% Employee Return Rate

Gender Equality Index Award | Minister of Employment and Labor Award

Im Il-ran, head of LG Household & Health Care's Luxury Marketing Division, is taking a photo after receiving the Minister of Employment and Labor Award from Kim Moon-soo, Minister of Employment and Labor, at the '9th Asia Gender Equality Index Awards Ceremony' hosted by Asia Economy on the 30th at Lotte Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul.

At the 9th Asia Gender Equality Index Awards ceremony, LG Household & Health Care, which received the Minister of Employment and Labor Award, created an environment where female talents can balance work and childcare without career interruptions. During pregnancy and childcare periods, employees are encouraged to use reduced working hours, flexible commuting hours, and family care leave. Maternity leave is 90 days (120 days for multiple births), with paid leave for pregnancy-related illnesses and up to 6 million KRW annually for infertility treatment expenses. Childcare centers and nursing facilities have been installed at sales sites for employees.

Additionally, employees with children aged 8 or younger or in the second grade of elementary school or below can use childcare leave and reduced working hours during childcare. These systems are available regardless of gender, and since June 2022, the childcare leave period has been significantly extended from one year to two years to ensure sufficient childcare time for members. In case of emergencies, employees can apply for emergency childcare and work from home.

After childbirth and childcare, employees can also benefit from flexible working hours or staggered commuting hours depending on the nature of their duties. This system allows members to autonomously choose their working hours within a set timeframe to focus on their tasks, which has received high approval from employees. The return-to-work rate after childcare leave reached 97.3% at the end of last year, and 94.6% of those employees have maintained their jobs for over a year.

LG Household & Health Care is also actively recruiting capable female talents. As of the end of last year, women accounted for 54.8% of the workforce, more than half. Women are appointed not only as practitioners but also in managerial and executive positions. At the end of last year, women made up 52% of junior managers and 34.5% of all managers. Among executives, 21.1% are women. In March 2022, a woman was appointed as an outside director, and in December of the same year, LG Group appointed its first female CEO from the public recruitment pool.

Furthermore, based on the Global Human Rights Declaration, LG Household & Health Care has established and complies with human rights management policies. In business activities, human rights considerations extend throughout the entire value chain, including members, customers, and partners. Matters related to non-discrimination, humane treatment, prohibition of forced labor, and freedom of association are transparently disclosed. Meanwhile, LG Household & Health Care has maintained the ‘Family-Friendly Excellent Company Certification’ from the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family for 10 consecutive years.