South Korea: Pay and benefits

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

Summary

• Pay levels and wage items are determined by the employment contract, subject to any applicable collective agreements, work rules and statutory requirements. (See General)
• There are no statutory rules regarding pay transparency. (See Pay transparency)
• Wages must, in principle, be paid in monetary form, but other forms of payment are permitted in certain cases. (See Payment of wages)
• Deductions from wages are permitted when this is set out by law or a collective agreement, or where the employee has given their explicit consent. (See Deductions)
• Employers must not engage in pay discrimination based on gender, nationality, religion or social status. (See Equal pay)
• A minimum wage applies to all businesses with certain exceptions. (See Minimum wages)
• The employer must enrol their employees to the four social programmes including the national pension scheme and pay a contribution for the employee for each programme. (See Pensions and social programmes)
• Employers are obliged to deduct income tax due from employees' pay at source and pass the sums withheld to the tax authorities. (See Income tax and social security)
• Employees are not legally entitled to sick leave or sick pay for illness or injury unrelated to work. (See Sick pay)
• The law does not grant employees any rights to bonuses, but some employers may choose to do so. (See Bonuses)
• Some employers provide employees with the certain benefits in kind such as work uniforms and an entitlement to use the company's cafeteria. (See Benefits in kind)