One in Four Parental Leave Takers Is a 'Dad'... Increased by 10,000 in 3 Years

26.3% of Parental Leave Takers Were Men Last Year... 8.5%p Increase Compared to 2018
29,041 Male Parental Leave Takers... Increased by 11,300 in the Last 3 Years
Parental Leave Pay Income Replacement Rate Raised... From 50% to 80% of Ordinary Wage

[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Lee Jun-hyung] It has been revealed that one in four childcare leave takers in South Korea (26.3%) are men. The number of male childcare leave takers has increased by 10,000 over the past three years. This is seen as a steady spread of a culture of shared childcare.

According to the Ministry of Employment and Labor on the 26th, the proportion of men among childcare leave takers last year was 26.3%. This is an increase of 8.5 percentage points compared to 17.8% in 2018, three years ago. The proportion of male childcare leave takers has steadily increased every year, with 21.2% in 2019 and 24.5% in 2020. Even in the first quarter of this year, the number of male childcare leave takers was about 8,000, a 25.6% increase compared to 6,359 in the same period last year.

Specifically, the number of male childcare leave takers last year was 29,041. Compared to 17,665 in 2018, it increased by 11,376. The number of male childcare leave takers showed an increasing trend every year, with 22,297 in 2019 and 27,423 in 2020. A Ministry of Employment and Labor official explained, "As the culture of shared childcare spreads, the number of male childcare leave takers is steadily increasing," adding, "We believe that the government's efforts to improve the system, such as raising the income replacement rate of childcare leave benefits from 50% to 80% of the ordinary wage, also had an impact."

Trends of Male Parental Leave Users. [Photo by Ministry of Employment and Labor]

The total number of childcare leave takers last year was 110,555, a 1.3% decrease compared to 112,040 the previous year. The Ministry of Employment and Labor attributes this to the absence of nationwide closures and school shutdowns, unlike in early 2020 when COVID-19 spread, leading to reduced demand for childcare leave. In fact, the number of childcare leave takers with children aged 3 to 5 decreased by 1,083, from 14,029 in 2020 to 12,946 last year.

However, the number of childcare leave takers in the first quarter was 29,344, a 14.3% increase compared to 25,672 in the same period last year. Notably, the number of male childcare leave takers increased at a higher rate than female childcare leave takers. In the first quarter of this year, female childcare leave takers numbered 21,351, a 10.5% increase from 19,313 in the same period last year, while male childcare leave takers increased by 25.6%, from 6,359 to 7,993 during the same period.

Hwang Bo-guk, Director of the Integrated Employment Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Employment and Labor, said, "Support for childcare leave workers has been greatly expanded, including the increase in the income replacement rate of childcare leave benefits starting this year," adding, "We expect workers to utilize the childcare leave system more, preventing career interruptions and spreading a foundation where work and family can be harmonized."

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