Employment Insurance Coverage for Special Employment Types like Insurance Planners and Delivery Workers in July... Insurance Premium Rate 1.4%

[Asia Economy Reporter Son Sunhee] Eleven special-type workers (STW) occupations, including insurance planners, credit card and loan solicitors, home study teachers, and delivery drivers, will be included in the scope of employment insurance starting from July. The insurance premium rate has been set at 1.4% (0.7% paid by the labor provider and 0.7% by the business owner), considering that benefits such as parental leave pay do not apply.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor announced on the 15th that the Employment Insurance Committee resolved the "Detailed Application Plan for Employment Insurance for Special-Type Workers" containing these details. This is to stipulate the target occupations, premium rates and contribution ratios, premium calculation and imposition methods, eligibility requirements for unemployment benefits, and conditions for maternity benefits payment, in accordance with the revised Employment Insurance Act and Employment and Industrial Accident Insurance Premium Collection Act, effective from July 1.

According to the resolution, the occupations included in the employment insurance coverage from July are insurance planners, credit card and loan solicitors, home study teachers, visiting teachers, delivery drivers, rental product visiting inspectors, home appliance delivery drivers, door-to-door salespersons, freight truck owners, construction machinery workers, and after-school instructors, totaling 11 occupations.

However, those who enter into labor contracts after the age of 65 or do not meet the income criteria (monthly wage of 800,000 KRW) are excluded from coverage.

Quick service and designated driver occupations will be covered starting January next year. Additionally, occupations such as domestic workers, automobile salespersons, automobile mechanics, ambulance and tow truck drivers, and other platform-based occupations will undergo a field survey in the first half of this year, with application plans to be discussed in the second half and implementation targeted for next year.

Similarly, golf course caddies will have their application timing reviewed later, considering the establishment of income tracking systems after 2022.

The insurance premium rate (1.4%) will be equally shared by workers and business owners. The business community immediately opposed this. The Korea Employers Federation (KEF) issued a statement saying, "Considering that STWs have a strong self-employed character, it is reasonable to set the premium contribution ratio at an intermediate level between (wage) workers (50%) and self-employed (100%)?that is, 75% by the individual and 25% by the business owner," and expressed concern that "(if the premium contribution ratio is the same) the business models related to STW workers could be destabilized, ultimately leading to negative impacts on the employment market."

However, the Ministry of Employment and Labor explained the rationale for the decision, stating, "In the current industrial accident insurance, the contribution ratio between STWs and business owners is 5:5, and considering that STWs have characteristics intermediate between workers and self-employed, and that the contribution ratio for business owners regarding STWs as business partners should be set differently from that of workers, it is necessary to take these factors into account."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.