The 26th Gangdong Seonsa Culture Festival Opens Online at 7 PM on the 8th

[Seoul Gangdong-gu News] Gangdong-gu Sets Next Year's Living Wage at 10,760 Won per Hour

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] The 26th annual "Gangdong Prehistoric Culture Festival" will open online on October 8.

On the first day, October 8 at 7 PM, the "Prehistoric People Talk Show," premiering on the Gangdong-gu Office YouTube channel, will kick off with "Prehistoric Talk," where movie entertainer director Jang Hang-jun entertainingly unravels stories of the prehistoric era depicted in films.

Following this, the dance video "Gangdong Sketch" by ARTBEAT, a YouTube dance team with over 1 million views, will be released. The concept is traveling through Gangdong, featuring dance performances at beautiful spots such as Gwangnaru Hangang Park, Cheonho Stationery and Toy Street, and Gobundari Traditional Market, capturing viewers' attention.

The "Prehistoric People Interview," featuring actor Kwon Hyuk-soo as a reporter, interviews various people including Gangdong residents, market merchants, and district office staff, with Kwon Hyuk-soo's witty commentary adding to the cheerful content.

On October 9, under the title "Wise Prehistoric Life," various video contents that can be enjoyed all day while staying indoors will be sequentially released.

Starting at 10 AM with a history lecture by Professor Kim Chang-ok, from noon popular YouTubers will continue with Gangdong cultural experience content titled "If Bitsal Money Rained from the Sky." Viewers can vicariously enjoy the fun of popular YouTubers experiencing traditional market food tours, family camping, workshop tours, and visits to Amsa archaeological sites.

Additionally, a comforting lecture by psychologist Professor Kim Kyung-il and Gangdong ASMR capturing the scenery and sounds of Gangdong will enrich the lonely autumn nights.

At 8 PM, the festival's highlight, the "Prehistoric Parade" street festival, will be transformed into an online format called "Front Row at Home Prehistoric Parade." It consists of parade videos produced and participated in by Gangdong residents by neighborhood and contest submissions, prepared as the festival's core content.

More detailed festival schedules and programs can be found on the Gangdong Prehistoric Culture Festival website, and all videos released during the festival will be available for replay on the Gangdong-gu Office YouTube channel for some time after the festival ends.

This festival was planned as an online content festival from the start, considering the COVID-19 situation, allowing all residents to freely enjoy the festival online.

Gangdong-gu (Mayor Lee Jeong-hoon) has decided the living wage for next year at 10,760 KRW per hour.

This is an increase of 0.6% (60 KRW) compared to this year and is 1,600 KRW (17.5%) higher than next year's minimum wage of 9,160 KRW. Working the statutory 209 hours per month, workers will receive a monthly wage of 2,248,840 KRW based on the ordinary wage.

The "living wage" was introduced to ensure that workers residing in Gangdong-gu can secure housing, education, and cultural life with their families. It is determined annually considering inflation, housing costs, household expenses, and private education costs. Especially for 2022, the living wage increase was decided considering the difficult economic conditions due to COVID-19, the gap with the minimum wage, and inflation rates.

Items included in the "living wage" are basic salary, transportation allowance, meal allowance, and fixed allowances that constitute ordinary wages; non-fixed allowances are not included.

The living wage applies to 875 workers estimated to benefit, including those employed by the district office and Gangdong-gu funded and supported institutions who are not under the public official pay system, as well as workers in private consignment, service, and construction companies contracted by the district office.

Lee Jeong-hoon, Mayor of Gangdong-gu, said, "The living wage system is a policy reflecting our district's commitment to respecting labor, aimed at stabilizing workers' lives and improving their quality of life." He added, "We will continue efforts to expand this policy beyond the public sector to the private sector through preferential policies for companies complying with the living wage."

Gangdong-gu (Mayor Lee Jeong-hoon) will hold the "2021 Seoul Amsa-dong Archaeological Site Online International Academic Conference" on October 8 to discuss the world heritage value of the Amsa-dong site and explore ways to register it as a World Heritage Site.

The Seoul Amsa-dong archaeological site is a representative prehistoric site in Korea, well-preserved with Neolithic lifestyle remains. Every October, to promote the cultural heritage value of the Amsa-dong site and raise residents' interest in World Heritage registration, an international academic conference is held in conjunction with the Prehistoric Culture Festival.

At this international academic conference, accumulated academic values of the Amsa-dong site will be comprehensively reviewed, and experts from Korea and abroad, including the UK, Japan, and China, will present and discuss the site's World Heritage value and future directions.

The academic conference will be live-streamed on YouTube at 1 PM on October 8, allowing unrestricted participation by anyone.

Lee Jeong-hoon, Mayor of Gangdong-gu, said, "This international academic conference will be a meaningful time focusing on the World Heritage value of the Amsa-dong site, which is being promoted for UNESCO World Heritage registration." He added, "Since it will be live-streamed on YouTube, we hope for active interest and participation from residents."

More detailed information can be found on the Seoul Amsa-dong Archaeological Site website.

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