Nationwide 'Work-Life Balance' Levels Announced... Seoul 62 - Gangwon 47 Points, Differences Among Local Governments

Ministry of Employment Announces '2020 Regional Work-Life Balance Index'

"Working Hours Reduced by 25 Hours Due to Introduction of 52-Hour Workweek"

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] It was found that the work-life balance index in Seoul is 15 points higher out of 100 compared to Gangwon, indicating that regional employment disparities are still distinct. However, statistics also confirmed that workers' 'work-life balance' has somewhat improved, with total working hours decreasing by 25 hours due to the expansion of flexible working hours following the introduction of the 52-hour workweek system.

On the 30th, the Ministry of Employment and Labor announced the '2020 Regional Work-Life Balance Index' containing these details. The survey was conducted by the Korean Women's Development Institute across 17 metropolitan local governments nationwide, divided into four areas: work, life, system, and local government interest, with 24 indicators. It has been conducted annually since 2017.

As of last year, the work-life balance index averaged 53.4 points nationwide, up 2.9 points from 50.5 in 2019. Scores increased in 12 out of the 17 metropolitan cities and provinces. By region, Seoul (62 points), Busan (61.2 points), Jeju (57.6 points), Jeonnam (57.4 points), and Sejong (55.9 points) scored relatively high. In contrast, Gangwon (47 points), Gyeongbuk (47.9 points), Jeonbuk (48 points), and Gwangju (48.5 points) scored low.

By area, in the 'work' domain, total working hours decreased from 182.8 hours in 2019 to 163.4 hours last year. Overtime hours also dropped from 12.2 hours to 10 hours during the same period. The Ministry of Employment and Labor explained, "The spread of flexible working systems such as the 52-hour workweek and telecommuting due to the COVID-19 pandemic appears to have influenced this."

According to the Ministry, the adoption rate of flexible working systems such as telecommuting rose by 7.3 percentage points from 19.8% to 27.1%. Utilization rates also increased by 2.6 percentage points from 11.6% to 14.2%. Regions such as Ulsan (15.8), Busan (15.5), and Seoul (15.4) received high scores.

In the life domain, the proportion of people who believe that 'household chores should be shared equally between men and women' rose from 58.7% to 62.1%. In the system domain, rates of parental leave for both women and men, reduced working hours during childcare periods, spousal paternity leave, and installation rates of public childcare facilities all increased. In the local government interest domain, efforts by local governments such as enacting work-life balance ordinances and expanding dedicated departments and personnel were confirmed by the data.

Min Gil-su, Director of Employment Support Policy at the Ministry of Employment and Labor, said, "It is quite meaningful that the level of work-life balance is generally improving thanks to social interest and local government efforts," adding, "Considering that the COVID-19 situation remains serious, I hope that the spread of new working methods such as telecommuting will serve as an opportunity to prevent infections while promoting a culture of work-life balance."

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