Mayoral hopefuls' pledges for shorter workweek inspire interest, debate

Rep. Cho Jung-hun, right, leader of the liberal minor opposition party Transition Korea, and former SMEs and Startups Minister Park Young-sun, left, a member of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, attend a policy debate hosted by local pollster Realmeter for potential candidates running in the Seoul mayoral by-election, in its studio in Seoul, Monday, in this screenshot from Cho Jung-hun's Transition Seoul YouTube account. The two mayoral hopefuls both vowed to shorten the workweek as an election pledges. Yonhap

By Jung Da-min

Several Seoul mayoral hopefuls competing for the April 7 by-election have pledged to shorten the workweek to four or 4.5 days per week from the current five.

Although debate is underway about the feasibility of shortening the workweek, it may be on the agenda in the next presidential election, set to be held in March 2022, with the issue increasingly drawing public attention.

Those who support the idea of introducing a four-day workweek system say it has already been introduced at some large companies and in specific sectors, and it is about time for the country to proactively introduce it in this era where work-life balance and quality of life are becoming important.

But those who oppose the idea say it is not yet the time to discuss the matter, when the country is facing an economic setback and many young people are struggling to find jobs. Opponents say how to create more jobs and boost the stagnated economy should be the priorities in the country's policy planning.

Among those who support the idea of a four-day workweek system is Rep. Cho Jung-hun, leader of the liberal minor opposition party Transition Korea, who is running in the Seoul by-election.

Cho took the initiative, saying he is planning to conduct, “a policy experiment of temporarily shortening working hours in some of the public sectors,” before fully introducing the system, if he gets elected mayor of the capital city.

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Cho, who has actively promoted the four-day workweek system by hosting related seminars and discussions at the National Assembly, also said that he would encourage private companies to adopt the system through tax incentives, while also providing consulting support.

“The four-day workweek system has already been introduced in some conglomerates and for certain occupations, and this fact shows how some workers are getting more time off than others,” Cho said Tuesday in a radio interview with local broadcaster MBC. “As I understand this policy is not one that can be forcibly pushed by the Seoul mayor, I am planning to provide financial support as incentives for companies hesitating to introduce the four-day working system due to various burdens such as labor costs.”

Another Seoul mayoral hopeful who supports the idea of shortening the workweek is former SMEs and Startups Minister Park Young-sun of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, who is competing with Rep. Woo Sang-ho in the party's primary for the by-election.

Park has pledged to introduce a “4.5-day” workweek system if she gets elected, while providing financial support for small companies that are struggling to observe the current 52-hour workweek system with a lack of workforce.

“Looking at the (business operation) situation in Seoul, there are still many small companies that are struggling to keep up with the 52-hour workweek system. For these small businesses, it is important for the city government to provide financial support so they can introduce shift work systems,” Park said during a televised policy debate with Cho, hosted by local pollster Realmeter, Monday.

She said that she would introduce the 4.5-day system for Seoul City-affiliated public organizations first.

However, conservative opposition mayoral hopeful and former Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, who is running in the main opposition People Power Party's primary for the Seoul mayoral by-election, criticized the pledge of shortening the workweek, saying creating more jobs for young people suffering from the job crisis should be the policy priority.

“As of last December, the youth unemployment rate stood at 8.1 percent, which is twice the rate of general unemployment, and nearly 400,000 young people said they were just taking a break due to the job crisis,” Oh said. “Is the 4.5-day workweek system for those who cannot even get a part-time job and have to worry about basic living expenses due to the job crisis? Such a pledge is certainly one that may frustrate young people again.”