"Flexible Application of Working Hours System to Boost Industrial Competitiveness" Experts Agree at Korea Employers Federation Forum

Discussion on Improving Working Hours Flexibility by Korea Employers Federation and Rep. Han Mu-kyung
Extending the Flexible and Selective Working Hours System Usage Period by 1 Year
Introducing Exemption and Working Hours Account System Tailored to Domestic Conditions

Near Gwanghwamun Intersection in Seoul, citizens are walking home after work. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] A proposal has been made to extend the utilization period of the flexible and selective working hours system to a maximum of one year. Although the current periods of 6 months and 3 months have been extended compared to when they were first introduced, the periods are still short, limiting the ability to flexibly adjust working hours.

On the 11th, Professor Lee Jeong of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies stated at the "Discussion on Improving Working Hours Flexibility" hosted by the Korea Employers Federation and People Power Party lawmaker Han Mu-gyeong, "Currently, the flexible and selective working hours systems have too short usage periods and complicated introduction procedures, which restrict their utilization," adding, "It is necessary to expand the utilization period to a maximum of one year and operate it by reaching written agreements with employee representatives at the department, team, or job unit level."

The flexible working hours system extends working hours during weeks with heavy workloads while shortening hours in other weeks to maintain an average of 40 hours per week. It is used when workloads are concentrated in certain cycles or seasons. However, Professor Lee explained that if peak seasons occur twice a year for 2-3 months each or if intensive work periods exceed 3-4 months, it is difficult to respond even with a 6-month unit. For jobs requiring high skill levels, it is difficult to replace workers with non-regular employees, and hiring short-term specialists only for peak seasons is also challenging.

There was also a suggestion to introduce an "exemption" system that does not apply working hour regulations to specialized fields or high-income earners. In the United States, the white-collar exemption system exempts executives, office managers, and professionals earning a fixed weekly salary of $684 or more from minimum wage and overtime pay obligations.

Professor Ryu Jun-yeol of the University of Seoul expressed, "It is necessary to consider developing and introducing a Korean-style 'white-collar exemption' system focusing on job groups with high volatility that must respond quickly to rapidly changing business environments, knowledge workers, groups whose correlation between working hours and productivity is difficult to predict, and those for whom autonomy in work is important."

There was also a proposal to allow the scope of discretionary working hours to be autonomously determined through labor-management consultations rather than by law, and to broadly expand the reasons for special extended work approval. It was argued that a working hours account system, where overtime hours are saved and used as leave when work is light, should be introduced to fit domestic circumstances. This system is widely used in Germany, especially in large workplaces, through collective agreements.

Since many parts of the working hours system are rigid, participants unanimously agreed that the system itself should be applied flexibly to enhance competitiveness in frontline industries. Professor Choi Hong-gi of the Korea Employment and Labor Education Institute emphasized, "Working hours are, in principle, a matter of the labor contract concluded between the worker and the employer, and it is appropriate to treat them as subjects of negotiation between the parties based on the principle of equal determination of working conditions," adding, "It is necessary to respect the methods that parties can decide when utilizing flexible working hours systems."

Lee Tae-hee, Executive Director of the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business, requested, "Please create room for labor and management autonomy to operate extended working hours more flexibly and extend the target and period of the additional 8-hour extended working hours system allowed for companies with fewer than 30 employees until the end of this year." Sohn Kyung-shik, Chairman of the Korea Employers Federation, stated, "To advance the industrial structure and move toward an advanced economic system, labor market flexibility must be increased and labor laws and systems modernized."

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