Male employees account for only 29% of parental leave

According to the Ministry of Labor on Monday, its Online Anonymous Report Center for Maternity Protection, which had been operated from April 19 to Oct. 20, had received 220 reports. Cases suspected of legal violation are directed to corrective action and work inspection. The ministry took action by running administrative guidance on companies in violation to ensure that male employees denied of parental leave could use their remaining off days.

Among the reports received, the majority accounted for unfavorable treatment using parental leave, followed by discouraging and denying approval for parental leave (36 cases) and disrupting and denying approval for reduced working hours during childhood care (27 cases). Despite numerous government policies to prevent women from leaving the workplace due to childbirth and care, the reality remains tough for women to balance work and childcare.

Parental leave is still a ‘pie in the sky’ for small/mid-sized businesses where more than 80% of employees in Korea work. According to a report by Rep. Lim Ija of the People Power Party obtained from the Ministry of Labor, only seven out of 10 employees who returned from parental leave continued to stay in the workforce. This means that three have not been able to return to work after taking parental leave.

The proportion of men using parental leave was significantly lower than that of women. Last year, 37,885 male employees used parental leave, accounting for 28.9% of the total workforce. Though the ratio increased five times than the ratio in 2015 at 5.6%, statistics still show that women overwhelmingly use parental leave.

The government has announced that it will increase monthly parental leave pay to up to 4.5 million won from 3 million won starting next year. However, many point out that it is crucial to foster an environment that encourages parental leave.


kalssam35@donga.com