Yeongam-gun to 'Introduce' Living Wage Starting Next Year

by Lee Jungkyung

Published 23 Sep.2022 14:24(KST)

Updated 16 Aug.2025 08:09(KST)

Yeongam County Office

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Jun-kyung] Yeongam County announced on the 23rd that it has decided to introduce a living wage starting next year and pay 10,100 won as the minimum wage.

Yeongam County held a Living Wage Committee meeting and decided that the living wage for Yeongam County next year will be 10,100 won, which is 480 won (4.98%) higher than next year's minimum wage of 9,620 won. The living wage is a social wage system concept that guarantees income levels higher than the legally mandated minimum wage and is implemented through local government ordinances.

Currently, 115 local governments nationwide (14 metropolitan and 101 basic) operate living wages, and in Jeonnam Province, the provincial office and Mokpo, Yeosu, Naju, and Haenam operate them. Yeongam County enacted related ordinances last April and will implement them starting next year.

The applicable targets are fixed-term workers employed for more than six months under the county and workers of county-invested and county-funded institutions. However, workers temporarily hired for projects supported by national, provincial, or county funds, such as public work and community projects, and workers already receiving wages above the living wage are excluded.

A county official stated, "We hope that the implementation of the living wage will contribute to the stabilization of workers' lives and the improvement of labor welfare."