DP, PPP both pledge 4.5-day workweeks, but feasibility doubtful

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DP, PPP both pledge 4.5-day workweeks, but feasibility doubtful

Published: 05 May. 2025, 13:31

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Office workers head to work across Gwanghwamun Square in Jongno District, central Seoul, on April 14. [NEWS1]

The four-and-a-half-day workweek has emerged as a hot-button issue in the early stages of the presidential race, as both the Democratic Party (DP) and the People Power Party (PPP) have adopted it as a campaign pledge, albeit in different ways.

“We will reduce working hours below the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development [OECD] average,” DP presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung said on Wednesday. “We should move toward a four-and-a-half-day workweek, and eventually a four-day workweek in the long term.”

In response, the PPP, which had already proposed the four-and-a-half-day workweek, stylized as a 4.5-day workweek in Korean, as a campaign pledge, criticized Lee’s four-and-a-half-day workweek plan for being "unrealistic and populist.”

The conservative party claims that the 40-hour weekly labor should be kept the same — with laborers working extra hours on the other four days to get half a day off without working less, as a sort of "flexible workweek" model.

For example, employees would work one extra hour Monday through Thursday, and then only four hours on Friday and the total weekly working hours would remain unchanged at 40, which is the same as the status quo.

This model is already being implemented by many companies and public institutions in Korea under different names. Some even argue, “It’s already happening — what kind of pledge is this?”

The DP’s plan faces some obvious hurdles. The liberal party calls for reducing the legal working week to 36 hours. Lee stated that “existing wages and working conditions should not be worsened,” suggesting that the shorter hours would come with no reduction in pay.

Democratic Party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung waves to supporters after paying his respects to Buddha during a Buddha's Birthday event at Jogyesa Temple in Jongno District, central Seoul, on May 5. [YONHAP]

Businesses are pushing back, asking, “Why should the burden fall on companies?” They argue they would have to hire more workers or fork over more pay to make up for reduced hours.

The prevailing view, including from the Korea Enterprises Federation, is that “except for a few large corporations, implementing a four-and-a-half-day workweek is unrealistic.”

“Large companies at least have options like expanding overseas production, but small- and mid-sized businesses or the self-employed would only see their burden of overtime pay increase,” said Yoon Dong-yeol, a professor of business administration at Konkuk University.

The timing is also unfavorable.

“We need to first consider whether Korea’s economy and businesses currently have the capacity to absorb a reduction in working hours,” said Park Ji-soon, professor of law and a faculty member of Korea University’s Graduate School of Labor Studies.

Democratic Party Rep. Lee Yong-woo of the National Assembly's Environment and Labor Committee speaks during a press conference on adopting the four-day workweek in front of the National Assembly building in Yeouido, western Seoul, on April 29. [YONHAP]

There are international precedents. In 2015, Iceland piloted a four-day workweek in the public sector without cutting pay, and found it led to improved quality of life and productivity.

In 2022, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) fully adopted a four-and-a-half-day workweek with 36 hours per week for federal government employees.

However, Iceland’s GDP is just 1.7 percent of Korea’s, and its population is only 400,000, while the UAE is a wealthy oil-producing nation.

Most other countries do not legislate reduced working hours; instead, they expand workers’ choices by offering employees a choice between working four or four and a half days a week. Belgium officially adopted the system in 2022, and countries like Britain, Japan and New Zealand have conducted trials.

Office workers walk across a street near Namdaemun on May 29, 2024. [YONHAP]

When a reduction in wages is involved, participation drops significantly. In 2021, Spanish telecom company Telefónica tried cutting hours with a 15 percent wage reduction, but saw almost no applicants.

Experts agree that long working hours need to be addressed. However, many point out that the focus should be on reducing actual working hours, not just changing legal standards.

“To reduce real working hours, we need a system where, simply put, you can work one week and take the next off,” said Prof. Park.

In Germany, daily working hours are the same as Korea’s — eight hours — but they are averaged over six months. Japan also regulates overtime limits on a monthly or annual basis.

In 2023, Korean workers averaged 1,872 hours per year, significantly higher than the OECD average of 1,752 hours. The gap translates into 13 hours more per month.

“Instead of using the four-and-a-half-day workweek as a campaign tool, we should focus on expanding workers’ autonomy,” said Cho Joon-mo, professor of economics at Sungkyunkwan University. “Germany’s working-time savings account system is worth considering.”

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY JANG WON-SEOK, KIM YEON-JOO [[email protected]]