Korea has more low-wage earners
By Kim Se-jeong
One in seven Korean workers is paid the minimum wage or less, making it among the worst offenders in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) for low pay.
In its Employment Outlook 2015 report, the OECD said 14.7 percent of Korean workers earn the minimum wage or lower, the highest ratio among 20 OECD countries surveyed in the report.
Korea’s minimum wage is 5,580 won per hour, but will rise to 6,030 won next year.
According to the report, Korea is followed by Latvia which has 14.2 percent of its working population earning less than the minimum wage. Luxembourg came next, followed by the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, France, Poland and Canada.
The report said in Japan, only 2 percent of workers earn less than minimum wage. In the United States, the figure was 4.3 percent.
Considering that the salary level of workers at large companies in Korea is not much lower than other countries, the 14.7 percent figure shows the large gap in wages between those in the high-income and low-income brackets.
The OECD report said such trends are being followed by many of its members. “Today, the gap between the rich and poor is at its highest level in most OECED countries in 30 years. The richest 10 percent of the population in the OECD area have a disposable income 9.5 times that of the poorest 10 percent,” it said.
Calls for a minimum wage increase have been rising globally.
In the United States, workers have demanded the federal minimum wage be raised to $15 from $7.25 since 2012. Some cities and counties have accepted the demand. Japan’s minimum wage will become 798 yen starting this fall.
Korea’s minimum wage was 4,860 won per hour in 2013 and 5,210 won in 2014. Korean workers are demanding the minimum hourly wage be raised to 10,000 won.