South Korea to raise minimum wage by 5% next year
A luxury apartment complex under construction near the Han River in Seoul is seen on Jan 26, 2016. (File photo: Reuters/Kim Hong-Ji)
SEOUL: South Korea said on Thursday (Jun 30) that its Minimum Wage Commission had agreed on an minimum hourly wage increase of 5 per cent to 9,620 won (US$7.39) for next year, in its first such decision since President Yoon Suk-yeol took office in May.
The pay hike will affect up to 3.4 million South Korean workers, the commission said, adding that it put the country's growth, inflation and employment outlook into consideration when deciding it.
Labour-friendly former president Moon Jae-in had raised the minimum wage by 16.4 per cent in July 2017 in the first year of his presidency, while the country saw a combined 41.6 per cent hike in the hourly minimum wage during his five-year term.
