The government will implement subsidies and consulting support to introduce the '4.5-day workweek' in corporations next year. Various childbirth and childcare-related benefits, including maternity benefits and spousal maternity benefits, will increase, and support will also expand to ease the burden on corporations caused by hiring temporary workers for parental leave.
The Ministry of Employment and Labor announced on the 31st that a budget of 37.6157 trillion won has been allocated for next year's government budget relevant to the ministry's projects. This is an increase of 2.2705 trillion won compared to this year's original budget (35.3 trillion won). The ministry explained, "Significant portions of next year's budget have been allocated to policy projects aimed at workplace safety, fairness, and happiness."
◇ 3.25 billion won allocated to support the introduction of the '4.5-day workweek'
First, the government has allocated a budget of 3.25 billion won to support the introduction of the 4.5-day workweek. If corporations agree to implement the 4.5-day workweek, a pilot program called the 'Work-Life Balance + 4.5 Project' will provide a set amount per employee to 150 to 200 business sites. The selection will primarily focus on corporations where long working hours are commonplace. Additionally, specialized consulting services related to the 4.5-day workweek will also be provided.
To support working parents, a '10 a.m. start time during childcare' program will be implemented for 1,700 individuals, and various benefits related to maternal protection and childcare support will be uniformly increased. Specifically, ▲ Maternity benefits will increase from a maximum of 2.1 million won to 2.2 million won per month ▲ Spousal maternity benefits will increase from 1.6 million won to 1.68 million won per month ▲ Miscarriage and stillbirth benefits will rise from 210,000 won to 220,000 won per month ▲ Infertility treatment benefits will increase from 80,000 won to 84,000 won per day, and ▲ Benefits for parental leave and reduced working hours during childcare will also expand in the budget.
Support for employers to encourage parental leave will also be expanded. The temporary worker support fund will be increased from 1.2 million won per month to ▲ 1.3 million won for business sites with 30 or more employees and 1.4 million won for those with fewer than 30 employees, while the work-sharing support fund will rise from 200,000 won to ▲ 400,000 won for business sites with 30 or more employees and 600,000 won for those with fewer than 30 employees.
◇ "Let's prevent industrial accidents" installation of safety facilities and support for public defenders for industrial accidents
Support for preventing industrial accidents will also be strengthened. A new initiative called 'Safe Workplace Guardians' hires retired workers from the construction industry and safety experts to conduct regular patrols at small and medium-sized enterprises. Other programs, such as 'Support for Addressing Blind Spots in Serious Industrial Accidents' and 'Safety Workplace Reporting Reward Program,' have been established. A budget will also be allocated for developing a 'Corporate Safety and Health Disclosure System,' which will require enterprises to disclose serious accidents, similar to the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosure system.
To prevent incidents such as entrapment and collision, the government will provide subsidies of up to 90% for installing safety facilities at small establishments with fewer than 10 employees, and will also support equipment to prevent heat-related injuries. To shorten the processing time for industrial accident claims, a new support program for public defenders for industrial accidents will be established, along with consulting services for supporting industrial accident hospitals and workers returning to work after accidents. A budget will also be allocated for technology development (R&D) in the field of industrial safety.
Support for social enterprises, which had been significantly reduced under the previous government, will be expanded. The relevant budget this year was 28 billion won, but it will increase to 118 billion won next year. It's explained that many projects related to social enterprises that had been suspended, such as employment support for vulnerable groups and nurturing startup teams, have been restored.
In addition, support for ▲ labor unions by industry and region (5.6 billion won) ▲ A program that provides wage preservation incentives to employers who convert temporary workers to permanent positions (6.9 billion won) has also been restored. A new 'AI Labor Law Consultation' program, which offers labor law advice and helps the general public file cases, as well as a free legal aid program to help recover unpaid wages for irregular and platform workers, will be established.
◇ 1.64 million more people to receive job seeker benefits… government will increase payments for wage arrears
In the field of employment, next year's budget for job seeker benefits has been set at 11.5376 trillion won, an increase of 6.205 billion won from this year's original budget (10.9171 trillion won). It is expected that an additional 1.636 million people will be able to receive job seeker benefits. The budget for advance payments from the government to cover unpaid wages for workers will also increase to 746.5 billion won from the original budget (529.3 billion won), allowing an additional 117,000 people to receive support. The budgets for ▲ industrial accident insurance benefits ▲ employment incentives for people with disabilities were also expanded.
The job promotion allowance granted to low-income job seekers will increase from 500,000 won to 600,000 won per month, and the youth employment jumpstart incentive provided to corporations hiring young people will be restructured to offer ▲ 600,000 won per month for 12 months to corporations in the capital area ▲ 600,000 won per month for 12 months to corporations outside the capital area + 4.8 million to 7.2 million won for young individuals over two years.