Jeong Manki "To Increase Birth Rate, Good Workplaces Must Be Created... Repeal of Large Conglomerate Group Regulation and 'Taja Prohibition Act'"

'Wishes for the 22nd National Assembly' 48th Industrial Union Forum
"Multinational Corporations Avoid Labor Policies and Korea's Galapagos Regulations"

Jung Manki, Chairman of the Korea Industrial Federation Forum, stated on the 27th, "The fundamental reason for the low birth rate is the lack of good lifelong jobs," adding, "Various entry regulations such as the 'Large Business Group Designation System' and the 'Tada Prohibition Act' should be abolished."

Chairman Jung made these remarks at the 48th Industrial Development Forum held on the morning of the same day at the Automobile Hall in Seocho-gu, Seoul, under the theme "What We Hope from the 22nd National Assembly - Policy Proposals for Regulatory Improvement."

He pointed out that as of 2021, the proportion of workers in large corporations in Korea was 13.6% of the total, which is less than half of the OECD average of 30.9%. On the other hand, the proportion of non-regular workers was 26%, more than twice the OECD average of 11%. He noted that the birth rate of workers in large corporations is 1.4 times higher than that of workers in small and medium enterprises, and the birth rate of regular workers is 1.9 times higher than that of non-regular workers. This means that without increasing the proportion of large corporation and regular workers, it is difficult to raise the birth rate.

Chairman Jung said, "The confusion between policies that promote cash support for childbirth and those that introduce various regulations hindering corporate growth must disappear," and added, "Regulations such as the Large Business Group Designation System and the Tada Prohibition Act, which were introduced by succumbing to interest groups or for some specific interests, should be abolished."

Jung Manki, Chairman of the Korea Industrial Federation Forum. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

Forum participants unanimously agreed that Korea's unique regulations must be abolished.

James Kim, Chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea (AMCHAM), said that labor flexibility should be expanded and the criminal liability burden on CEOs should be reduced.

Chairman Kim advised, "To innovate the rigid labor market compared to Japan, Hong Kong, and Singapore, greater flexibility must be introduced," and "By easing the unusually high criminal liability of CEOs compared to major countries, Korea can establish itself as the regional headquarters for Asian global companies."

Yoo Jungjoo, Team Leader of Corporate Systems at the Korea Economic Association, pointed out that the utilization period of flexible and selective working hours is shorter compared to major advanced countries (1 to 3 years). He also said that unclear regulations under the Serious Accident Punishment Act should be improved and the level of punishment reduced.

Above all, he emphasized the need to reform the Large Business Group Designation System. He said, "Korea imposes excessive responsibility on the same person (head) based solely on the total assets of the corporate group, which is a case not found in major foreign countries," adding, "A comprehensive review of the system is necessary."

Professor Kim Daejong of the Department of Business Administration at Sejong University said that corporate tax should be lowered to attract foreign-invested companies. Korea's corporate tax rate, including local taxes, is 26%, which is higher than the US and OECD average (21%), Singapore (17%), and Hong Kong (16.5%).

Professor Kim said, "Ireland lowered its corporate tax to 12.5% and attracted 1,700 multinational company headquarters, becoming the richest country in Europe with a per capita national income of $110,000 (about 150 million KRW)."

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