Published : Nov. 28, 2018 - 09:10
More than 7 in 10 large South Korean firms have changed or are considering overhauling their pay systems due to the country's higher minimum wage, a poll showed Wednesday.
According to the survey of 108 big businesses, about 30 percent of respondents said they have reformed their pay structures concerning the minimum wage, with 43 percent reviewing an overhaul.
The remaining companies replied they have no plans to reform their wage systems due to either administrative difficulties or exemptions from the minimum wage.
Lee Jae-gap, the Minister of Employment and Labor (Yonhap)
The survey was commissioned by the Korea Economic Research Institute, a think tank under the Federation of Korean Industries, or the lobby for family-controlled conglomerates in South Korea.
South Korean companies have voiced strong opposition to raising the country's minimum wage, which they fear will jack up labor costs and thus hurt their competitiveness.
The government hiked the minimum wage by 16.4 percent to 7,530 won ($6.70) per hour on Jan. 1 this year, the biggest jump in nearly two decades. Next year's minimum wage has been set at 8,350 won, up 10.9 percent from this year. (Yonhap)