POSCO, Average Number of Children 1.55... Increasing for 2 Consecutive Years

Promoting Positive Perceptions of Childbirth and Parenting
Renaming Parental Leave to Parenting Immersion Period

The family of Seo Young-tae, leader of Rolling Equipment Department 2 at Gwangyang Steelworks, who participated in the 2024 POSCO Concert Childcare Class held in the Gwangyang area on the 9th of last month. Photo by POSCO

The average number of children per POSCO employee has been increasing for the second consecutive year since 2022.

According to POSCO on the 11th, the average number of children per POSCO employee decreased from 1.59 in 2019 to 1.51 in 2022, but increased to 1.54 last year and 1.55 in the first quarter of this year. This is evaluated as a positive effect of POSCO’s continuous efforts to foster a family- and childbirth-friendly culture on employees’ actual childbirth.

Not only the average number of children, but POSCO employees also tend to marry and have children earlier. As of 2023, the average age of marriage for men in South Korea is 34, whereas POSCO male employees marry at a younger age of 31.9, which is 2.1 years younger. The age at which they have their first child is also younger at 31.1, compared to the national average of 33.

The increase in birth rates and earlier marriages among POSCO employees is the result of POSCO’s continuous promotion of a family- and childbirth-friendly culture centered on work-life balance for employees.

Through employee surveys, POSCO changed the name of 'parental leave' to 'parental immersion period' starting in July. Employees expressed that the existing term 'parental leave' gave the impression of 'taking a break,' which did not reflect the 'value of parenting.' The new term 'parental immersion period' aims to create a culture that respects the value of parenting more and encourages employees who hesitate to take parental leave to comfortably use the leave system. It conveys the meaning of 'time fully devoted to parenting' from the perspective of employees who have become parents.

Average Number of Children of Married POSCO Employees Over Time. Data Provided by POSCO

Additionally, recognizing that rest for employees exhausted from parenting is important for healthy childcare and ultimately a happy work life, POSCO has started a pilot program to support employees with children to take a break from parenting and refresh themselves. At the POSCO concerts held in May and June recently, childcare classrooms were set up at the concert venues for employees who found it difficult to attend due to their young children. Seo Young-tae, leader of the Rolling Equipment Department 2 at Gwangyang Steelworks, who entrusted his two children to the childcare service, said, "I was able to enjoy the concert comfortably with my wife without worrying about the children, so both parents and children had a happy time." He added, "Supporting not only work but also rest, though small, was practically helpful, and I felt that our company is truly committed to overcoming low birth rates."

Meanwhile, POSCO operates 20 family- and childbirth-friendly programs tailored to the life cycle from marriage to pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting, such as parental telecommuting, regional daycare centers, and a four-day workweek every other week, receiving positive responses from employees. Professor Cho Young-tae of the Seoul National University Population Policy Research Center, who studied the effectiveness of POSCO’s family- and childbirth-friendly programs in 2022, evaluated, "POSCO’s family- and childbirth-friendly programs enhance employees’ pride and sense of belonging and can ultimately influence marriage and childbirth at the national level."

POSCO plans to continue its efforts to establish a family- and childbirth-friendly culture. This year, it will strengthen personalized guidance so that employees can use in-house family- and childbirth-friendly programs according to their life cycle, and will also gather feedback on current programs to create conditions that allow employees to use the programs flexibly.

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