'I am de-facto labor union leader'

A staff lounge in Hanmi Global’s headquarters in Samseong-dong, southern Seoul / Korea Times photo by Kim Da-ye

By Kim Da-ye

When Kim Jong-hoon founded Hanmi Global in 1996, he established three principles: the company would prioritize its employees and executives, not its shareholders; it would be socially responsible; and it would contribute to the advancement of the construction industry.

“A public company is supposed to put shareholders’ profits first, but Hanmi Global aims to manage the company for the wellbeing of its employees,” Kim said.

Hanmi Global started out wholly owned by its executives and employees, and has tried to keep that structure. The chairman believes that happy employees work hard and satisfy their clients, and eventually help the company perform better.

In 2008, the firm planned to go public in order to raise capital to acquire a company abroad. Companies are allowed to set aside 20 percent of stocks in a public offering for employees, but the regulatory body told Hanmi that it could not because the employees already held a 28 percent stake. In his memoir, Kim recalled that he asked the labor ministry to reinterpret the regulation in Hanmi’s situation because the structure had contributed to the firm’s productivity as well as labor-management relations. The ministry accepted Kim’s request.

The company remains largely owned by the executives and employees. The executives, including Kim, together control 44.3 percent of the company. Walk Together, the firm’s philanthropy body, holds a 4.2 percent stake, while the employee stockholders’ association has 2.3 percent. The rest belongs to minority shareholders. Kim’s stake decreased from 28.2 percent to 22.8 percent in April last year, when he donated 127,410 shares worth 1 billion won to the foundation.

For a medium-size company with revenue of 130 billion won in 2011, Hanmi Global’s benefit package for employees is handsome, and is better than those of many conglomerates.

“We don’t really need a labor union because I am a de-facto union leader,” Kim said.

Kim pays particular attention to childcare. He advises unmarried and newly-married employees to have at least three children. For those with three children or more, the firm provides a childbirth grant.

The current labor law guarantees 90 days of paid maternity leave for birth and recommends one year of leave for childcare. Because the latter is not compulsory, many female workers come back to work in three months. Kim made a further paid three-month leave for childcare compulsory. Furthermore, women with children three years old or younger are allowed flexible working hours.

Kim says that many women don’t want to have children, not only because of the short maternity leave but also because of the huge cost of raising children, especially education expenses. Hanmi Global covers tuition for all children of employees from kindergarten to university. Since March 2010, the company has provided the same benefits to adopted children.

Apart from childcare support, Hanmi has various policies to boost employee satisfaction. The firm provides employees with 500,000 won a year for language and IT skills training and supports their postgraduate studies. It also pays for employees’ books, encouraging them to read at least one book a month. Every Thursday is designated “self-development day,” on which people leave at 5 p.m. and join classes or club activities.

Employees take two months of paid sabbatical leave when they have worked continuously for 10 years. Executives can take the sabbatical when they have worked for five years.

Hanmi also employs more than 20 counselors from various fields, with whom employees discuss their career paths. When they retire, they will receive a six-month training and education on post-retirement life.

Hanmi’s efforts to improve its working environment have been recognized by external institutions. The firm was selected as a family-friendly firm by the Ministry of Health and Welfare in 2009. In 2011, it was designated one of the “best companies to work for in Korea” by the Great Place to Work Institute, along with LG Display, Shinhan Bank and KT.

In November 2010, Kim published an autobiography titled “We Go to Work in Heaven.” The book describes how Hanmi has grown and how it puts the workforce before everything else.

“I didn’t write the title,” Kim said. “It was provided by the employees.”