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Labor Proposes 16.3 Percent Minimum Wage Increase as Talks Begin
Negotiations over South Korea's next minimum wage opened Tuesday with labor seeking a rise to 12,000 won per hour. Employer surveys showed widespread business strain and preference for a freeze.
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Negotiations between business and labor over next year's minimum wage formally began Tuesday at the Minimum Wage Commission, Yonhap reported. Labor representatives proposed raising the hourly minimum wage by 16.3 percent from this year's 10,320 won to 12,000 won. That rate equals a monthly wage of 2.508 million won based on a 209-hour work month.
This year's minimum monthly wage is 2.156 million won. A survey released Tuesday by the Korea Enterprises Federation asked 500 self-employed business owners nationwide. Fifty-seven percent said business conditions had worsened compared with last year.
The largest share, 44.6 percent, favored freezing next year's minimum wage.156 million won. Last year, 2.769 million workers, or 12.4 percent of all wage earners, received less than the legal minimum wage.
In the accommodation and food service sector, 31.6 percent of workers earned below the minimum wage. Employer groups proposed allowing differentiated minimum wages for Korean restaurants, foreign restaurants, and snack bars such as gimbap shops. The proposal was rejected at last week's Minimum Wage Commission meeting.
The United States, Japan, and France differentiate wage floors according to region, industry, age or skill level. During the Moon Jae-in administration, rapid minimum wage hikes placed heavy pressure on small businesses.
