By Kim Se-jeong
Between December 2013 and March 2014, 23-year-old jobseeker Kim worked 47 hours per week at Lotte City Hotel Mapo in Seoul.
He was supposed to be a short-term part-time worker whose working hours would not exceed 15 hours per week. Rather than being offered a full-time contract, he was forced to renew his contract every day.
After the hotel fired him after three months, Kim sought arbitration from the Central Labor Relations Committee, saying the company took advantage of him by not giving benefits equivalent to his weekly work hours.
Such a story is common among young jobseekers who are eager for work experience in a tough labor market. The sluggish economy pushed up the unemployment rate for those under 30 to 12 percent this year.
People in Kim’s shoes, such as interns or other types of trainees, cannot refuse the companies’ demands to work longer hours than agreed or to get paid less than the legally set amount, for fear of losing their opportunities to work.
The hospitality industry has been one sector where such “youth exploitation” is rampant, under the name of training young workers. As criticism grows, the industry has moved for self-improvement.
On Tuesday, the Ministry of Employment and Labor signed an agreement with major hotels to treat interns and trainees at the hotels fairly.
“The hotel industry is one of the most coveted workplaces among young jobseekers, and we believe it’s important that the young are treated fairly,” Labor Minister Lee Ki-kweon said during a meeting with hotel representatives. “I would appreciate the hotels’ cooperation which is critical.”
The list of hotels which joined the move includes Lotte Hotel, The Westin Chosun Seoul, The Shilla Seoul, Sheraton Grande Walkerhill, W Seoul Walkerhill, the Plaza Seoul, Park Hyatt Seoul, The Ritz-Carlton Seoul, Hotel Grand Ambassador Seoul, InterContinental Grand Seoul Parnas and InterContinental Seoul Coex.
The hotels are to follow guidelines on trainee working conditions, introduced by the ministry in February. According to the guidelines, hotels will recruit trainees for working periods of less than six months, compensate them for meals and transportation, designate officials to take charge of their training and not demand they work overtime, nightshifts and holidays.
Lee said a study by the ministry showed the hospitality, fashion and publishing industries have the highest frequency of labor abuse.
In the study of 151 companies ― 44 hotels, 23 fashion-related companies, 19 beauty parlors and eight bakeries ― the ministry found 103 violated the labor law at least once. Eighty-nine of them were found to pay their interns below minimum wage.