Women Job Seekers Using Unemployment Benefits to Buy Chanel? ... Criticism of Discriminatory Remarks Spreads

Controversy Over Ruling Party Official's Remarks at Public Hearing
"Gender Division... Ruling Party Must Apologize"

Remarks made at a public hearing held to discuss improvements to the unemployment benefits system have sparked controversy. The claim that "female job seekers use unemployment benefits to travel abroad or buy luxury goods" became problematic, prompting calls for an apology not only from opposition parties but also from the ruling party, citing discrimination against women.

Earlier, the People Power Party's Special Committee on Labor Reform held a public hearing on the improvement of the unemployment benefits system at the National Assembly on the 12th. The controversy arose from comments made by an official in charge of unemployment benefits at the Seoul Regional Employment and Labor Office during this event.

The official said, "Men, who fit the purpose of our employment insurance, come with dark expressions, but women, whose contracts have expired, young people, come saying they will take a break during this opportunity," adding, "Then, they travel abroad while receiving unemployment benefits." He also stated, "They enjoy themselves by buying Chanel sunglasses or clothes that they couldn't afford while working, using the benefits."

Park Dae-chul, Chairman of the Policy Committee of the People Power Party, is speaking at a public hearing on unemployment benefit system improvement held at the National Assembly on the 12th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

Park Dae-chul, the policy chief of the People Power Party, also emphasized the problems of unemployment benefits by quoting this official's remarks. At a special lecture hosted by the Industry-Academia-Research Forum held at the Chosun Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 12th, Park said, "Among the young people who come to receive unemployment benefits, one group comes with very dark faces. They are genuine job seekers who want to work but lost their jobs and are looking for new ones," adding, "Another group comes with very bright faces. They apply for and receive unemployment benefits, wear luxury sunglasses, and travel abroad."

He continued, "Our younger generation prefers to earn a little less and just rest comfortably rather than work," and "In fact, small and medium-sized enterprises currently have their main workforce in their 50s and 60s. The structure is such that people in their 20s do not work much."

The opposition raised their voices, calling the remarks derogatory toward young and female job seekers.

Lee Byung-hoon, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, said at a party policy coordination meeting held at the National Assembly on the 13th, "These remarks reveal how distorted and narrow-minded the current ruling party's perception of social safety nets like unemployment benefits is," urging, "The People Power Party should apologize for the remarks that disparage those who are unemployed and may incite hatred against women and young workers."

Criticism of "gender division" also emerged within the ruling party. Ok Ji-won, head of the Future Women Strategy Forum, wrote on her Facebook on the 12th, "The government official's gender-dividing remarks at today's ruling party-government consultation on unemployment benefits were highly inappropriate regardless of party affiliation," questioning, "Are men diligent workers and women luxury-seeking 'doenjangnyeo' (a derogatory term for materialistic women)? When did this outdated 'doenjangnyeo' agitation even come from?"

Meanwhile, the ruling party and government announced they would consider lowering or abolishing the minimum threshold for unemployment benefits, which currently pays about 80% of the minimum wage. This is in response to criticism that high unemployment benefits lead job seekers to be less proactive in reemployment efforts or to commit fraudulent claims, resulting in wasteful tax spending.

Im E-ja, chairperson of the special committee and a member of the People Power Party, said on the 12th, "There is public criticism that we are taking better care of grasshoppers than ants who work," adding, "The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) also recommended lowering the minimum threshold, noting that Korea is the only country where the real income of unemployment benefit recipients decreases when they take minimum wage jobs."

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