South Korea - The Korea Times

Employees newly registered for state insurance hit record low in 2023: data

The number of employees newly registered for the country's four major state insurance programs fell to a record low in 2023, marking the second consecutive year of decline, data showed Wednesday. A total of 26.14 million people were registered as employees in 2023, up 0.3 percent, or 88,000 individuals, from a year earlier, according to the data from Statistics Korea. Registered employees refer to both wage and non-wage workers who are reported to public institutions and enrolled in one or more of the country's four major social insurance programs. While the number of workers who remained with the same employer increased, both "new entrants" to the labor market and "job movers" declined. The number of employees who continued working at the same workplace came to 18.548 million in 2023, up 521,000, or 2.9 percent, from a year earlier. In contrast, the number of new entrants — individuals who were not registered in 2022 but joined in 2023 — stood at 3.65 million, down 6.8 percent from the previous year. This marks the second straight year of decline and the lowest level since the statist

Jun 4, 2025By Yonhap

Employees newly registered for state insurance hit record low in 2023: data

Actor Kim Hye-eun apologizes for remarks on elitism amid election controversy

Actor Kim Hye-eun has issued a handwritten apology after facing public backlash over comments perceived as a critique of academic elitism and classism in the final days of Korea’s presidential election. Kim posted a photo of a handwritten letter Wednesday on her social media, saying she waited until after the vote count had concluded out of respect for the electoral process. “I’m sharing this now in hopes that it doesn’t interfere with the time of watching the people’s choice unfold,” she wrote. “I sincerely apologize to anyone who felt discomfort or disappointment from the post I made on May 31,” she continued. “To those who have supported me over the years, and to those who may have been disheartened or unsettled by my words — I fully accept the responsibility and am deeply reflecting on my actions.” The now-deleted post included a photo of Kim with her aunt and the caption, “I don’t think I’ve ever been more ashamed of having a Seoul National University degree than I have over the past two days. I feel compelled to apologize on behalf of others.” In the sa

Jun 4, 2025By Hankookilbo

Actor Kim Hye-eun apologizes for remarks on elitism amid election controversy

Father in 40s kills wife and sons by driving into sea over debt burden

A man in his 40s who drove his car into the sea, killing his wife and two teenage sons in Jindo, South Jeolla Province, confessed to committing the act due to mounting debt, police said Tuesday. Gwangju Bukbu Police said Ji, 49, who is accused of murdering his family, told investigators he was overwhelmed by financial burdens. Ji worked as a rebar foreman at construction sites, subcontracting jobs and overseeing a team. Police said he had accumulated about 160 million won ($116,000) in debt after struggling to pay his workers and failing to manage contracts with construction firms. During questioning, Ji said he gave his wife and sons sleeping pills prescribed to his wife, then intentionally drove into the sea. The incident occurred around 1:12 a.m. on Sunday, when Ji drove his car into the waters off Jindo Port with his wife, 49, and their two sons, aged 18 and 16, inside. Ji survived by escaping through the driver's side window and fled to Gwangju using a vehicle provided by an acquaintance, surnamed Kim, 49. Both were arrested on Monday evening. Earlier that day, at 2:22 p.m., a local h

Jun 4, 2025By Hankookilbo

Father in 40s kills wife and sons by driving into sea over debt burden

New president faces daunting task of uniting sharply divided nation

With Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) clinching the presidency, he now faces the daunting task of uniting a nation deeply fractured by months of political turmoil and partisan strife. His ascension follows months of intense political turmoil and social strife triggered by the controversial imposition of martial law by former President Yoon Suk Yeol. The profound divisions facing the incoming administration are underscored by stark figures: A March report from the Korea Institute of Health and Social Affairs (KIHASA) indicated that the public's perception of social conflict reached an unprecedented high of 3.04 points last year on a scale of 0 to 4. Ideological divisions between progressive and conservative camps ranked as the most intense source of conflict, scoring 3.52 on the survey’s scale. The findings, collected between June and September of last year — before the martial law crisis erupted — suggest deep polarization even ahead of the political upheaval. Studies suggest that Korea’s social divide reached a breaking point following a series of flashpoints

Jun 4, 2025By Lee Hae-rin

New president faces daunting task of uniting sharply divided nation

Older adults increasingly spend more on companion animals

It's already been three years since Maru joined the family, but Kim Eun-a is still surprised by her mother's unwavering devotion to the Maltese dog that weighs just 3 kilograms. "Her wallet is wide open for the dog. What I remember from my childhood is that she was always frugal. So it's really surprising that she spares no expense for her new 'baby,'" said the 30-year-old, who now lives apart from her 59-year-old mother. As traditional family structures shift and pet culture continues to evolve, more people are forming deep emotional bonds with their companion animals. As of December 2024, the number of registered dogs and cats in Korea reached 3.49 million, up 6 percent from a year ago. The unexpected result? Wide-open wallets. Total expenditures on animal-related services jumped by 30 percent in 2024 compared to 2021, according to a recent analysis of 24.85 million payment transactions by KB Kookmin Card. Over the same period, the number of customers increased by 39 percent. Notably, the most significant growth was observed among those aged 60 and above. From 2021 to 2024, spending by c

Jun 3, 2025By Lee Yeon-woo

Older adults increasingly spend more on companion animals

Fire breaks out at sewing factory in Seoul, killing 1, injuring 4 others

A fire broke out Tuesday in an apparent act of arson at a sewing factory in central Seoul, leaving one person dead, fire authorities said. The blaze began on the second floor of a five-story building in Jung District at around 9:35 a.m., killing one woman, officials said. A man in his 60s was taken to the hospital with severe burns, while three others suffered minor injuries. One firefighter also suffered first-degree burns to his face while fighting the fire, fire authorities added. A Level 1 emergency response was issued at approximately 9:41 a.m., mobilizing 31 vehicles and 115 personnel to contain the fire. The flames were fully extinguished by 11:02 a.m. Fire authorities and police are investigating the exact cause of the fire, with witnesses saying a man had poured what appeared to be paint thinner at the scene.

Jun 3, 2025By Yonhap

Fire breaks out at sewing factory in Seoul, killing 1, injuring 4 others

ELECTION Voters line up early, fueled by hope for change

On most days, Seoul Jeonghwa High School is filled with students practicing haircuts on mannequins as they train to become hairdressers. But on early Tuesday morning, it was bustling with voters lining up to cast their ballots as one of the 14,295 voting sites nationwide for the presidential election. By 5:50 a.m. — 10 minutes before polls opened — a long line had already formed outside. Although the voters backed different candidates, many shared the same hope for the next president: to revive the struggling economy. “The economy is tough, and everyone is hurting. I came early because casting my vote could bring some change,” Kang Sung-wook, a 40-year-old software developer, told The Korea Times. “A lot of layoffs are happening right now, and I really feel how bad the economy is while working — it’s unsettling,” he added. Kang said he voted for Lee Jae-myung, the liberal Democratic Party of Korea's candidate, believing he is someone who can turn things around. While most people woke early to vote before starting their day, some did the opposite — working through the ni

Jun 3, 2025By Park Ung

[ELECTION] Voters line up early, fueled by hope for change

ELECTION Nationwide voting starts, winner expected around midnight

Voting for the presidential election began at 6 a.m. Tuesday at 14,295 polling stations nationwide. The election comes 60 days after the Constitutional Court removed former President Yoon Suk Yeol from office in April over his declaration of martial law late last year. By law, a presidential election must be held within 60 days of an impeachment ruling. The winner of this election will assume office immediately Wednesday — bypassing the customary 60-day transition period — with a presidential term set to continue until June 2030. Voting will continue until 8 p.m. Once the polls close, ballot boxes at each station will be sealed with tamper-proof stickers and their slots locked to prevent the insertion of additional ballots. Election officials will then transport the boxes to counting centers under police escort, accompanied by election observers. About 30 minutes after the polls close, roughly 70,000 election workers will begin counting ballots at 254 stations across the country. A clear idea of the winning candidate is expected to emerge once more than 70 percent of the ballots have

Jun 3, 2025By Park Ung

[ELECTION] Nationwide voting starts, winner expected around midnight

Far-right group tied to gov’t-led after-school program sparks outrage

Rhee Park School, a conservative organization, has become a last-minute flashpoint in Korea's presidential election as it faces accusations of systematically manipulating online comments in favor of Kim Moon-soo, the People Power Party (PPP) candidate. The controversy intensified following revelations that the group has been indoctrinating children with ultra-conservative ideologies through government-supported after-school child care services, hours before voters cast their ballots Tuesday. The burgeoning scandal drew a sharp rebuke from the Gwangju branch of the Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union (KTU). In a scathing statement issued Monday, the union condemned educational authorities and demanded the immediate abolition of the Neulbom School program, an after-school child care initiative promoted for years by the ousted Yoon Suk Yeol administration and the conservative party as a response to the nation's plummeting birthrate. The union's outcry underscores concerns that a program designed to support families is instead being co-opted for political indoctrination. “The news

Jun 2, 2025By Lee Hae-rin

Far-right group tied to gov’t-led after-school program sparks outrage

PHOTO Final vote rehearsal

Election officials conduct a final test of ballot-sorting machines at a vote-counting center in central Seoul's Yongsan District, Monday, a day before the presidential election. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

Jun 2, 2025By Park Ung

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