South Korea Experiments with Reduced workweeks to Combat Worker Stress and Boost Economy
Seoul, south Korea – Facing a stressed workforce and economic headwinds, South Korea is actively piloting reduced workweek models, including four-day workweeks and four-and-a-half-day schedules, in a bid to improve work-life balance and maintain global competitiveness. Several companies and a major province are leading teh charge, though concerns remain about potential economic impacts.
Cafe24,the nation’s leading e-commerce solutions provider,fully implemented a four-day workweek in July,building on a previous system of alternating Fridays off. Crucially, the company maintained employee salaries and overall working hours.
Gyeonggi Province, surrounding Seoul, launched a more nuanced pilot program in June, trialing a four-and-a-half-day workweek without wage cuts. The initiative,slated to run until 2027,provides financial support to small and midsize businesses and public institutions to offset increased labor costs associated with reduced hours.
The move towards shorter workweeks isn’t without its critics. Kwon Young-sik, director of human resources at Yonsei University Health System’s parent organization, Severance, estimates a permanent shift to a four-day workweek could add approximately 100 million won ($720 USD) in labor costs per ward. He revealed that over the past three years,Severance has already spent 1.2 billion won on labor costs related to these experiments, speaking at an event where the hospital’s labor union presented pilot program results last month.
Lee Kang-young, general director of severance, echoed these concerns, stating that “institutional and financial support would be absolutely necessary” for a four-day workweek to be sustainable.
Seoul National University business professor park Nam-gyoo voiced concerns about potential impacts on productivity and labor market disparities. “South Korea is an export-led economy. It faces an uncertain future if it fails to remain competitive globally,” Park told Al Jazeera, adding that the country’s low birthrate, sluggish economy, and global competitiveness challenges must be considered.
Despite these reservations, workers participating in the trials report positive experiences.Go,a participant in one of the pilot programs,stated,”There were absolutely no drawbacks. The only downside in my case was that,as it is a pilot programme,only a few could participate,so I feel sorry for my colleagues who couldn’t. Other than that, it ran smoothly without any operational issues.”
Lee, another worker benefiting from the reduced schedule, expressed optimism about the future. “Just as the five-day workweek was initially met with concern but eventually settled in, a four-day workweek is expected to gradually bring positive changes to society,” he said.
The trials represent a meaningful step for South Korea, a nation known for its demanding work culture, as it seeks to address worker well-being and navigate a complex economic landscape.
