South Korea's tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. said Tuesday it will implement a full-fledged flexible work hour system starting in April, adding it will also be applied to overseas branches in the near future.

Under the plan, employees are given the choice of when to come and leave their offices and are only obligated to work at least four hours a day, 40 hours a week.

"The new policy is expected to foster employees' creativity," a Samsung official said.

The move came a month after Samsung suggested the program as a reward upon deciding to freeze wages for all workers in 2015.

"While the flexible hours cannot be used every day due to the hierarchical atmosphere, the new system is clearly a lifesaver for mothers with young children," a Samsung Electronics employee said.

The program is already implemented at a handful of divisions.

Samsung Group plans to implement the new system at Samsung Electronics and gradually expand to overseas offices, as well as other affiliates, such as Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co., Samsung SDI Co. and Samsung Display Co.

Industry watchers said the new rule adopted by South Korea's No. 1 business group may spread to other rivals as well, bringing significant changes to the country's labor sector. (Yonhap)