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CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.

Early summer heat grips Korea until early next week

An early summer heat wave is sweeping across Korea, with temperatures running 5 to 10 degrees Celsius above seasonal norms and expected to persist into early next week. According to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) Friday, daytime highs are expected to remain around 31 degrees Celsius during the weekend and through early next week, marking a heat spell that arrived about a week earlier than last year. Abnormally high temperatures were recorded across parts of the country Thursday. In Wonju, Gangwon Province, the daytime high reached 31.5 degrees Celsius, marking the highest mid-May temperature since recordkeeping began in September 1971. Paju in Gyeonggi Province also saw a new mid-May record, with temperatures climbing to 30.7 degrees, the highest since observations there began in December 2001. The heat is forecast to linger for several more days, reaching its peak on Sunday. Saturday will see morning lows of 12 to 18 degrees Celsius and daytime highs of 23 to 32 degrees, with temperatures rising further on Sunday to 23 to 33 degrees. Inland areas of North Gyeongsang Provinc

May 15, 2026By Jung Da-hyun
Early summer heat grips Korea until early next week

Samsung Electronics strike raises concerns over deepening labor polarization

Concerns are rising within the labor sector that a planned strike by Samsung Electronics’ unions could deepen Korea's labor market polarization, as their demands signal a notable departure from conventional labor-management negotiations. The Samsung Electronics unions are set to begin a general strike on May 21, after tensions escalated over efforts to institutionalize the company’s bonus system. The union is calling for a legally binding guarantee to allocate 15 percent of operating profit to performance-based bonuses, along with the removal of the current cap on payouts — demands that management has rejected. However, the unions’ focus on performance-based bonuses marks a sharp break from past labor negotiations, where such incentives have rarely been a core bargaining issue. “Disputes over the allocation of performance bonuses are uncommon in established labor-management practices,” said Choi Young-ki, a professor of business administration at Hallym University. He added that the scale of the proposed profit-sharing is also unusual, noting that wage negotiations and strikes

May 15, 2026By Jung Da-hyun
Samsung Electronics strike raises concerns over deepening labor polarization
  • Samsung Electronics considers scaling down chip production to brace for strike impact

Korean student accused of assaulting teacher for 20 minutes, throwing chair

Education authorities in Jeju are investigating an incident where an elementary school student allegedly assaulted a teacher for about 20 minutes in a state-run school counseling program. The assault took place in mid-April, according to the Jeju City Office of Education and Jeju Teachers' Union. During the confrontation, the student punched and kicked the teacher and threw a chair and other objects. The teacher suffered injuries to the hands and feet, requiring two weeks of treatment. The teacher took sick leave and has received treatment for insomnia, anxiety and depression. The regional teachers' rights protection committee under the Jeju City Office of Education opened an investigation on April 20 at the teacher's request. "I hope what I went through does not happen again," the teacher said through the Jeju Teachers' Union. "I also hope proper measures will be taken so the student can reflect on his behavior, and that a safe educational environment will be created where teachers' mission and responsibility are not neglected." The Jeju Teachers' Union said stronger protections for teac

May 15, 2026By Hankookilbo
Korean student accused of assaulting teacher for 20 minutes, throwing chair

Lee says will do utmost to create conditions for teachers to focus only on education

President Lee Jae Myung on Friday pledged his best efforts to create conditions in which teachers can concentrate solely on teaching their students. Lee made the pledge in a message posted on his Facebook account on Teachers' Day amid growing calls for stronger protection for teachers following a recent series of incidents where teachers were subject to abusive behavior by parents and students. "I am well aware that the difficulties and responsibilities (teachers) must shoulder are increasing amid the rapidly changing educational environment," the president noted. "I will do my best to create a better environment in which teachers can devote themselves entirely to education," Lee said, promising "practical support and changes" to help teachers maintain their "passion and sense of calling." "Today's South Korea has been made possible by the efforts and devotion of teachers," the president also commented, expressing his "deep respect and gratitude" to teachers across the country.

May 15, 2026By Yonhap
Lee says will do utmost to create conditions for teachers to focus only on education

Korea's birthrate uptick masks demographic crisis, advocate warns

Korea’s slight rebound in births should not lull politicians into a false sense of security, said a leading family policy advocate, calling for mayoral and gubernatorial candidates to treat low birthrates as an urgent structural crisis rather than a past problem. “We may have seen a rebound, but the current numbers are nowhere near a level where we can feel complacency,” Hwang In-ja, executive representative at the Federation for Korean Families and former lawmaker, said during an interview in Seoul, May 7. “This still is a national crisis and in Seoul it is even more serious. The city’s total fertility rate last year was 0.63.” Hwang said her organization began preparing for the June 3 local elections late last year out of concern that birthrate policy was slipping down the political agenda. “In the past five years or so, low fertility was at the center of every election,” she said. “But as soon as the numbers ticked up a little, we saw candidates losing interest. We created this manifesto precisely to wake them up again.” Hwang said the upcoming elections should be

May 15, 2026By Jung Min-ho
Korea's birthrate uptick masks demographic crisis, advocate warns
  • Seoul mayoral candidates urged to put families at heart of every policy

Seoul mayoral candidates urged to put families at heart of every policy

The next mayor of Seoul should put families at the center of every major policy decision, from transport and housing to labor and budgeting — instead of merely adding yet another targeted support scheme. That is the core message of 172 civic groups ahead of the June 3 local elections, as they call for the adoption of a new “family impact” standard to be applied across all city policies. At a policy forum hosted by the Federation for Korean Families and nine other organizations in central Seoul on May 7, the groups released a joint manifesto urging all mayoral candidates to “reflect family impact in all Seoul governance,” not just in a handful of welfare programs. “Over the past few decades, central and local governments have poured astronomical sums of money into trying to overcome this (demographic) crisis. But what has been the result?” the joint statement said. “The reason is clear. Policy has not treated the family as a single, living community, but has instead carved people up into fragmented individuals — women, children, older people and youth. One-off cash han

May 15, 2026By Jung Min-ho
Seoul mayoral candidates urged to put families at heart of every policy
  • Korea's birthrate uptick masks demographic crisis, advocate warns

At Seoul's bridge control center, AI helps stop 99% of suicide attempts

For most Seoul residents, the Han River is a place for evening strolls, picnics and a brief respite from city life. But for Kim Jun-young, chief of the Hangang Bridge CCTV Integrated Control Center in Gwangjin District, Seoul, it is where his team pulls people back from the edge every day. Established in 2021, the center uses artificial intelligence (AI) for comprehensive emergency response, monitoring 900 CCTV cameras across 17 of Seoul's 21 pedestrian-accessible Han River bridges. Beyond suicide prevention, its most frequent task, the center also handles criminal tracking, traffic accidents and drug enforcement. “We get three to four suspected suicide attempts that result in a dispatch call every day,” Kim said in an interview with The Korea Times. “Most of them go with officers without protest, which means they were determined to end their lives.” The intervention record reflects the scale of the crisis as well as the effectiveness of the response. According to city data, suicide attempts on Han River bridges have surpassed 1,000 for four consecutive years since 2022, reaching

May 15, 2026By Park Ung
At Seoul's bridge control center, AI helps stop 99% of suicide attempts

How much should you give at a Korean wedding in 2026?

The average amount sent as wedding gift money by bank transfer in Korea rose to 117,000 won ($78.58) last year, as younger guests moved away from the traditional 50,000-won baseline to offset the financial burden of rising venue costs. NH NongHyup Bank released a trend report analyzing 5.33 million wire transfers from 1.15 million customers between January 2023 and December 2025. The data, released Thursday, detailed the changing norms for appropriate gift amounts. The analysis showed a steady 6.9 percent increase in average cash gifts over the two-year period, climbing from 110,000 won in 2023 to 114,000 won in 2024, before reaching 117,000 won last year. Shift in gift amounts While 50,000 won remains the most common gift amount, accounting for 42.3 percent of all transfers last year, its prevalence is dropping. The share of 50,000-won transfers fell from 46.5 percent in 2023. During the same period, the share of 100,000-won transfers rose from 36.1 percent to 39.7 percent, and 200,000 won gifts increased from 6.1 percent to 7.5 percent. Even larger transfers ticked up. Transfers of 1 mil

May 15, 2026By Hankookilbo
How much should you give at a Korean wedding in 2026?

Korea quintuples maximum fine for ships fishing illegally in Korean waters

Korea has raised fivefold the maximum fine for foreign ships fishing illegally in its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), the Coast Guard said Thursday, amid efforts to crack down on illegal Chinese fishing in the West Sea. Under a revised EEZ fisheries law that took effect Tuesday, the maximum fine for foreign vessels fishing illegally in Korean waters has been raised to 1.5 billion won ($1 million) from 300 million won, according to the Coast Guard. The move comes as illegal Chinese fishing has increased in Korea's EEZ in recent years. The Coast Guard seized 57 illegal Chinese fishing vessels last year — the highest annual figure since 66 were captured in 2021. The legal revision also raises the amount of bail required for the release of seized vessels and crew to a maximum 1.5 billion won, sharply up from a previous maximum range of 150 million to 300 million won, which varied by vessel size. The bail is returned once the offenders pay the fine. In December, President Lee Jae Myung called for tougher fines against illegal Chinese fishing vessels, noting existing penalties apparently were n

May 14, 2026By Yonhap
Korea quintuples maximum fine for ships fishing illegally in Korean waters

Ex-POWs win damages suit against N. Korea for 3rd time

Former South Korean prisoners of war (POWs) again won a damages suit filed here against North Korea and its leader Kim Jong-un on Thursday over forced labor they endured in captivity. The Seoul Central District Court ordered North Korea and Kim to pay 21 million won ($14,000) each to five former POWs, who escaped from the North in the early 2000s after being taken prisoner during the 1950-53 Korean War. The five, including Ko Kwang-myun, 95, filed the suit earlier this year, claiming they were forced to work in mines in North Korea even after the 1953 truce that halted the Korean War. They demanded a compensation of 21 million won per person, and the court granted the full amount. The ruling marked the third such decision after the same court handed down similar verdicts in 2020 and 2023. The North and Kim were ordered to pay the same compensation to two former POWs in July 2020 and three others in 2023. In all cases, the court hearings proceeded without any party representing the defendants. Despite winning the cases, however, it seems difficult for the plaintiffs to actually receive th

May 14, 2026By Yonhap
Ex-POWs win damages suit against N. Korea for 3rd time
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