Lotte Property & Development and Lotte Duty Free Selected as Excellent Work-Life Balance Companies by Ministry of Employment and Labor

Company-wide Flexible Work Arrangements Activated
Recognized for Achievements in Family-Friendly Policies

Lotte Property & Development and Lotte Duty Free announced on November 28 that they have been selected as '2025 Korea Work-Life Balance Excellent Companies,' a program organized by the Ministry of Employment and Labor.

This evaluation was based on a combination of quantitative indicators, such as the utilization rate of flexible work arrangements and parental leave usage rate, as well as qualitative indicators, including improvements in work methods and the establishment of a culture that enables both work and childcare. Selected companies receive a variety of incentives, including exemption from regular labor inspections for three years and additional points in family-friendly and leisure-friendly certification programs.

Min Rahong, Head of Management Support Division at Lotte Property & Development (left), and Kim Minjae, HR Team Leader at Lotte Property & Development, are taking a commemorative photo at the '2025 Korea Work-Life Balance Excellence Companies' Awards Ceremony. Provided by Lotte Property & Development

Lotte Property & Development introduced a selective working hours system in July. The company explained that since the implementation of this system, the number of overtime work cases has decreased by approximately 96 percent, resulting in a significant improvement in the work environment.

Additionally, the company has established an institutional foundation for "taking leave without hesitation," such as allowing flexible annual leave to be used in one-hour increments and removing the requirement to state a reason for annual leave. In addition to statutory leave, employees are granted "refresh leave," which guarantees a five-day break, as well as extra family leave.

The company has also significantly strengthened support systems to establish a culture of parental leave and improve perceptions. At the group level, mandatory paternity leave is provided, and both male and female employees are institutionally supported to take an additional year of parental leave beyond statutory benefits. Since July this year, a pre-maternity leave system has also been introduced.

Other comprehensive support measures include a vehicle support program for families with multiple children, full coverage of workplace daycare center costs, a year-long regular meal delivery service for employees returning from parental leave, and leave for male employees to accompany their spouses to prenatal checkups, providing thorough support throughout pregnancy, childbirth, and childcare.

Min Rahong, Head of Management Support Division at Lotte Property & Development, stated, "Work-life balance is not only essential for enhancing individual job satisfaction but also for securing corporate competitiveness. We will continue our efforts to create a work environment where all employees can fully demonstrate their capabilities."

Sangho Park, Head of Management Support Division at Lotte Duty Free (right), is receiving the 2025 Work-Life Balance Excellent Company Award from Myungro Lee, Executive Director of the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business. Photo by Lotte Duty Free

Lotte Duty Free also allows approximately 80 percent of its headquarters staff to use a staggered commuting system, enabling them to choose their start and end times in 30-minute increments, while all store employees work under a biweekly flexible work schedule.

The company has also implemented various family-friendly policies to help employees balance work and childcare. Female employees can benefit from infertility leave, which can be taken up to twice in six-month increments, and unpaid prenatal leave, which has been extended to up to ten months, providing substantial support during pregnancy and childbirth. From this year, the company has strengthened its child care policies by extending the maximum age for extended parental leave from eight to twelve years old, and male employees can now take up to one year of elementary care leave from their child's school entry until the age of twelve.

Sangho Park, Head of Management Support Division at Lotte Duty Free, said, "We will continue to support the balance between work and life for our employees and strive to become a company where people of all genders and ages can enjoy working."

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