[THE INVESTOR] South Korea’s wage gap between its high school and university graduates is smaller than the average of Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development members, data showed on Aug. 29.

According to data compiled by the Ministry of Employment and Labor, average wages of the country’s university graduates are 37 percent higher than those of high-school graduates. The OECD average wage gap stands at 56 percent.

In terms of the wage gap, South Korea ranked 23rd among the OECD member countries.

Observers say this runs counter to the general perception in Korean society, which highly values academic backgrounds, that university graduates may get paid much more than those with high school diplomas.

Analysts speculated that the relatively small wage gap is attributable largely to the country‘s seniority-based wage system, from which blue-collar workers who can usually stay longer at a job benefit more than white-collar workers who tend to retire earlier.

(theinvestor@heraldcorp.com)