South Korea: Employee Rights

Original authors: Jung Woo Lee, Hyunyoung Seo and Jong In Jun, Yulchon LLC

Summary

• There are statutory rules on hours of work, overtime and flexible working. (See Hours of work).
• Employees are entitled to minimum rest breaks and rest periods. (See Rest breaks and rest periods)
• The law does not prohibit Sunday work. Employers must grant one paid weekly day off to an employee who has a full attendance during the week, which is generally a Sunday. (See Sunday and weekend work)
• The number of days of paid annual leave increases by one day every two years of continued service after the first anniversary, up to the maximum of 25 days (See Holiday and holiday pay)
• Employers must grant a pregnant employee 90 days of maternity leave. See Maternity and pregnancy rights)
• An employee is entitled, on application, to take parental leave (childcare leave). The maximum period of leave is generally 12 months, but employees may be able to take 18 months under certain special circumstances. (See Parental leave)
• Employers must grant an employee whose spouse gave birth 20 days of paternity leave with pay. (See Paternity leave)
• There are two main types of carer's leave. (See Carer's leave)
• Employees may be entitled to other types of leave for purposes related to marriage, bereavement or labour union representation activities. (See Other leave)
• Employers are generally prohibited from discriminating against part-time employees due to their part-time status. (See Part-time workers)
• Statute permits and regulates temporary agency work, known as "worker dispatching". (see Temporary agency workers)
• There are no specific regulations for remote working. (See Remote workers)
• There are no statutory rules to consider for posted workers. (See Posted workers)
• There are two types of transfers, namely the business transfer and the asset transfer. (See Transfers of undertakings)
• If an employee is not paid a salary or severance pay due to the employer's bankruptcy, a government-run system pays the employee a certain amount of salary and severance pay on behalf of the employer. (See Insolvency of employer)
• Disciplinary procedures are not generally governed by statute. (See Disciplinary and grievance procedures)
• In workplaces with 10 or more employees, the employer is required to establish written "work rules" as part of the employment contract, stipulating conditions of employment that apply to all employees at the workplace. (See Internal rules)
• Workplace harassment is prohibited. (See Bullying).
• Unless there are specific exceptions outlined in statute, employers are required to obtain the prior consent of employees before collecting and using their personal information. (See Data and privacy protection)
• Although it is not specifically intended for reporting workplace misconduct, the Act on the Protection of Public Interest Whistleblowers enables individuals to disclose any wrongdoing that negatively impacts public interests. (See Whistleblowing)
• There is no legally defined "right to disconnect". (See Right to disconnect)