More Koreans pursuing work-life balance

By Lee Kyung-min

The number of people that place equal value on work and life surpassed those that prioritize work, indicating people no longer embrace the traditional definition of professional success that usually came at the expense of personal life, government data showed Wednesday.

In a survey of 34,147 men and women aged over 19 from May 15 to 30, Statistics Korea found that 44.2 percent of the respondents said work and life are equally important in 2019, while 42.1 percent said work is more important.

This is the first time the former outnumbered the latter, amid declining emphasis on work over the past few years.

In 2015, more than half, or 53.7 percent, said work is more important, while only about a third, or 34.4 percent, said work and life are equally important.

In 2017, the gap between the two groups closely narrowed with 43.1 saying they prioritized work, while 42.9 percent work-life balance.

By gender, nearly half, or 48.2 percent, of men said work is more important, while only 33.8 percent of women agreed.

About half, or 49.5 percent of women, said work and life are equally important, to which only 40.3 percent of men agreed.

The change in trend is attributable to the greater labor force participation by women over the past few years, an expert said.

“In the past, women were required ― directly or indirectly ― to stay at home to raise children and do house chores. But not anymore,” Hanyang University professor Lee Sam-sik said.

“Many households have a dual-income, meaning women do not necessarily quit their jobs after getting married. Working women in that sense are given a greater say in how a family as a union between two working adults and sometimes with children should function,” he added.

The assessment is in line with the data which showed 86.4 percent of 36,310 respondents aged over 13 held a positive view on women's participation in economic activities.

The figure has been on a continued rise since 2015 when it was 84.5 percent.

Of the total, 61.4 percent said women should work as long as they can regardless of marriage and childbirth.

Some 19 percent said women should work before childbirth and after children are grown while 13.5 percent said they should work after children are grown.

Some 3.7 percent said they should work before the birth of a first child. Only 2.4 percent said they should not work after getting married.

“The change is also attributable to a growing notion that women should work to support their families amid economic slowdown,” a statistics agency official said.

“Enhanced childcare services that help unburden women from childrearing is also another factor. Overall data nevertheless is a clear step toward an improvement,” she added.