Is It Hard for Insurance Agents to Earn Even 800,000 KRW a Month?... Declining Employment Insurance Premiums for Special Employment Workers

Since First Implementation in July Last Year, Charges Decreased by 1.5 Billion Won in Four Months from 19.429 Billion Won
Over 500,000 Subscribers, but Significant Income Decline in Face-to-Face Jobs like Door-to-Door Sales

A Samsung Life insurance planner talking with a client. (Photo by Asia Economy DB)

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] Since the implementation of the employment insurance system for 12 special employment types (teukgo), including insurance planners, in July last year, the amount of insurance premiums imposed has been decreasing every month. Although the number of subscribers surpassed 530,000 within five months of implementation, it is interpreted that the income decline in face-to-face occupations affected the amount of employment insurance premiums imposed. The monthly income of low-income teukgo household heads also showed a downward trend, supporting this interpretation.

According to the 'Employment Insurance Subscription Status for Teukgo Workers' data received on the 6th from the Ministry of Employment and Labor by Rep. Chu Kyung-ho of the People Power Party, the amount of insurance premiums imposed on 12 teukgo workers, including insurance planners, door-to-door salespeople, and private tutors/visiting instructors, decreased monthly from 19.429 billion KRW in July, the first month of implementation, to 18.558 billion KRW in August, 18.511 billion KRW in September, and 17.998 billion KRW in October. The imposed amount is the insurance premium to be paid based on the subscriber's income, which moves contrary to the trend of increasing teukgo insurance subscribers. From July 1 to November 30 last year, the number of teukgo workers who subscribed to employment insurance reached 533,317 over five months.

By occupation, the insurance premium amount for insurance planners, who have the highest number of subscribers, decreased by 12% (1.441 billion KRW) from 12.01 billion KRW in July to 10.569 billion KRW in October.

The government explains that the decrease in the imposed amount is related to the decline in income. A Ministry of Employment and Labor official stated, "Teukgo workers who do not meet the insurance premium imposition criterion of 'monthly income of 800,000 KRW or more' based on their monthly income situation may be excluded from the (imposed amount) statistics." This means that the increase in teukgo workers earning less than 800,000 KRW per month influenced the decrease in the imposed amount.

The decrease in the monthly income of teukgo workers is also confirmed by the Statistics Korea Household Income and Expenditure Survey. According to the microdata analysis of the Household Income and Expenditure Survey by Statistics Korea, the business income of 'others' workers, which includes teukgo household heads in the 1st to 2nd income quintiles (bottom 40%) of all urban households in the third quarter of last year, was 1.594 million KRW per month, down 3.5% (57,000 KRW) from 1.651 million KRW during the same period in 2020.

Experts emphasize the need to pay attention to the income decline of teukgo workers. Professor Lee Byung-hoon of the Department of Sociology at Chung-Ang University said, "The reduction in insurance premium imposition despite the increasing number of subscribers is directly related to the income decline of teukgo workers due to the impact of COVID-19."

The imposed amount for loan solicitors decreased from 486 million KRW in July last year to 367 million KRW in October, and door-to-door salespeople also saw a slight decrease from 1.368 billion KRW to 1.341 billion KRW. On the other hand, the insurance premium amounts for cargo truck drivers and delivery workers, who have relatively fewer face-to-face opportunities, increased. Professor Lee said, "In particular, the increase in the imposed amount for delivery workers, a non-face-to-face occupation, and the decrease for face-to-face occupations such as insurance planners suggest that the income decline of face-to-face teukgo workers directly led to the decrease in employment insurance premium imposition."

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