Sim Sang-jung "Achieving Workplace Gender Equality Including Closing Wage Gaps"

On the 6th, 2030 Working Women’s Pledge 'Career Woman Fighter'

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Ju-yeon] Sim Sang-jung, the Justice Party presidential candidate, promised on the 6th to "create a country where the lives of working women are like those in advanced countries."

On the afternoon of the same day, Sim announced the '2030 Working Women’s Pledge' and said, "We will overcome gender discrimination in the workplace, which has become as familiar as air."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Sim pointed out, "Our gender wage gap is 32.5% (2019), which is 10% higher than Japan’s, and has been the highest among OECD countries for 26 years." She also said, "According to Statistics Korea, among married women born in 1983 in our country, one in four left the workplace due to pregnancy, childbirth, and childcare and never returned," criticizing, "There is no life for working women in the world’s 10th largest advanced economy."

Sim then promised ▲enactment of the Gender Wage Gap Elimination Act ▲mandatory inclusion of gender equality in negotiation agendas ▲introduction of a labor hour selection system by life cycle ▲establishment of a National Substitute Workforce Support Center ▲principle of zero tolerance for hierarchical sexual crimes.

Sim said, "To prevent gender discrimination from the recruitment process, companies will be required to appoint a gender equality officer and be provided with gender discrimination guidelines."

She also emphasized, "We will create convertible time-selection jobs that allow workers who work part-time due to childcare, caregiving, studies, or education to return to full-time work at any desired time," adding, "There will be no discrimination in social insurance coverage, hourly wages, or working conditions compared to full-time work, and career development and promotion opportunities will be equally guaranteed without career damage during part-time work."

She promised to further activate the currently limited parental leave.

Sim explained, "Parental leave, which is currently concentrated in the initial three months (six months combined for couples), will be properly available for at least one year (two years combined for parents)," and "the income replacement rate for parental leave pay will be raised to 80% of the ordinary wage and extended to be paid for one year." She added, "To promote parental leave in small and medium-sized enterprises, we will establish a 'National Substitute Workforce Support Center' where the state will always prepare substitute workers and support situations such as parental leave."

Regarding 'hierarchical sexual crimes' in the workplace, she said, "We will strengthen disciplinary actions not only against business owners but also against concealment and protection of sexual harassment in the workplace, and completely abolish the statute of limitations for power-based sexual crimes, which is currently only 10 years." She explained that a punitive damages system will also be introduced to strengthen business owners’ responsibilities.

Earlier that day, Sim held the '2030 Women’s Supporters Launching Ceremony' at the National Assembly. At the event, Sim said, "I will ensure that the voices of minorities and the vulnerable are heard, that empathy for the suffering of animals is felt, and that the existence of 2030 women who do not give up shouting and acting against all discrimination and violence for a better future will not be erased in this presidential election."

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