For many, May can be the cruelest of months

May, which includes Children’s Day and Parents’ Day, is dubbed “Family Month.” But with the added expense of purchasing gifts and eating out, “Family Burden Month” might be more accurate.

Job Korea, an employment consultant firm, surveyed 562 office workers, 241 of them married, about their spending plans for May.

The overwhelming majority (81.1 percent) dreaded Parents’ Day the most, followed by Children’s Day 26.5 percent and Teachers’ Day (14.2 percent).

Of those surveyed, 79.5 percent complained about the expenses for gifts and allowances, while 27.4 percent cited the time out of their busy schedules for dinner or traveling.

Other responses cited the crowds (15.5 percent) and difficulty making reservations at restaurants and shopping for gifts (11.9 percent).

So how much do these working individuals plan to spend on the three days?

Married employees expect to spend a total of 567,000 won, while single workers said 403,000 won.

The study also showed that both married and unmarried employees spent the most on Parents’ Day, including giving an allowance to their mothers and fathers.

Married employees expected to spend 360,000 won on Parents’ Day, 140,000 won on Children’s Day and 64,000 won on Teacher’s Day.

Unmarried office workers had plans to spend 220,000 won on Parents’ Day, 80,000 won on Children’s Day for their nephews and 44,000 won on Teacher’s Day.

By Kim Jung-yoon [kjy@joongang.co.kr]