Seoul first locality to provide parental leave benefits to self-employed, freelancers

A baby in a bear outfit crawls towards their father at the Daegu Baby and Kids Fair held in Buk District, Daegu, on March 7. [NEWS1]

Self-employed workers and freelancers in Seoul will receive parental leave benefits starting next year, a measure that aims to address the city’s staggeringly low birthrate.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Monday that it will provide 900,000 won ($652) in paid leave to pregnant self-employed individuals and freelancers, making it the first locality to adopt such a measure for independent employees.

Self-employed and freelance workers with pregnant wives will also receive 800,000 won in paid leave.

According to the city government, the measure comes as pregnancy could directly impact the individuals' workplaces, such as cafes, nail salons and hair salons.

According to Statistics Korea, around 815,000 people were self-employed in Seoul last year. Of these, 63 percent, or 516,000 workers, ran their own businesses, such as cafes, bakeries and photo studios.

The parental leave benefit provided by the city government will be in addition to the 1.5 million won that pregnant self-employed individuals and freelancers have received from the Ministry of Employment and Labor since 2019.

Those with multiple pregnancies such as twins will receive a higher amount of 1.7 million won from the city government.

Unlike company workers, who are legally entitled to 10 days of paternal leave when their children are born, independent workers have no such benefits.

The measure will officially be implemented in 2025 after the city government talks with the Ministry of Health and Welfare and amends relative ordinances.

Households with children born from Monday onwards will be eligible for the scheme, but they must apply within a year of birth.

“Self-employed individuals and freelancers who are experiencing the joyful moment of birth under such challenging conditions are the true heroes of our time,” Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said.

The mayor added that he will contemplate and pursue practical measures to overcome the low birthrate, which could benefit more people.

Fertility rate continued free fall in 2023 at 0.72: Data

Since 2013, Korea's fertility rate has been among the lowest in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

The total fertility rate, or the average number of expected births a woman has during her childbearing years, hit a record yearly low of 0.72 last year. Seoul’s fertility rate is even lower at 0.55, the lowest among cities in the country, according to Statistics Korea.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]