Articles by Lee Jaeeun
Lee Jaeeun
jenn@heraldcorp.com-
[New Neighbors] Is S. Korea a racist country?
Raj, an Indian resident of South Korea for nine years, was shocked during a visit to Busan when a club bouncer bluntly informed him and his friends, "You cannot enter because you are Indian." Despite their objections, they were directed to a neighboring club, only to encounter a notice explicitly barring entry to Indian and Pakistani men. The incident gained widespread attention after Raj's video of the discriminatory notice went viral, courtesy of Indian YouTuber Nikita Thakur, w
Social Affairs March 20, 2024
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Seoul city offers up to W200m to foreign-invested firms for new hiring
The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced Monday that the city would provide subsidies of up to 200 million won ($150,000) per firm to foreign-invested enterprises -- legal structures in which overseas-based companies can participate in the economy here -- in growth industries and that hire six or more new employees. Under the subsidy plan, the new employees must be Korean nationals and retained until 2026. To be eligible, enterprises must have invested in one of the city’s eight new gro
Social Affairs March 18, 2024
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S. Korean convicted for bringing in and selling NK books
The Seoul Central District Court handed down a verdict of guilty to the chair of a civic organization who had been accused of bringing in and selling North Korean novels, officials said Sunday. The court found Jung Ik-hyeon, 60, chair of the South and North Korean Economic Federation Unification Farming Cooperative, of breaching the Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Act, sentencing him to pay a fine of 3 million won ($2,250). Jung was accused of bringing North Korean novels and USB flash dri
Social Affairs March 17, 2024
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Junior doctors ask ILO to intervene in Seoul's back-to-work order
A group of medical interns and residents who left hospitals in protest of the government’s planned medical school admissions hike has demanded the International Labor Organization, a labor rights watchdog under the United Nations, intervene in Seoul's back-to-work order, it said on Thursday. “The government is threatening junior doctors to return to work by mentioning suspension of their licenses, a forced labor prohibited by the ILO. Accordingly, we have asked the ILO to interv
Social Affairs March 14, 2024
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Labor groups slam BOK report on foreign care worker wages
Labor groups have reacted with anger to a report by South Korea’s central bank that proposed to bring in foreign care workers and pay them less than the minimum wage. “The bank’s suggestions of paying migrant workers cheaper than the minimum wage are discriminatory and anti-human rights ideas,” said Citizens‘ Solidarity for Securing the Publicness of Care and Realizing the Right to Care, a major coalition comprised of the country’s two umbrella trade unions, t
Social Affairs March 13, 2024
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7 in 10 oppose easing rules on marriages between blood relatives: poll
Nearly 75 percent of South Koreans oppose the government moving toward easing laws related to marriage between blood relatives, a recent poll shows. According to data released on Monday by the Ministry of Justice, 74 percent of respondents said they think the government should prohibit marriage between blood relatives within eight degrees of relations, or "chon" in Korean, as it currently does. Fifteen percent of respondents said it should only prohibit marriage between blood relatives
Social Affairs March 11, 2024
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Korean workers thought to slack off for 80 mins of work day: survey
Human resource managers at major companies in Korea think their workers spend approximately 17 percent of their working hours, around 80 minutes, on other activities, a survey showed on Monday. According to the survey by the Korea Enterprises Federation, human resource managers of the largest 100 companies by sales rated their office workers’ productivity at an average of 82.7 out of 100. The survey revealed that HR managers think their office workers spend an average of around 1 hour and
Social Affairs March 11, 2024
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Travel ban lifted for ex-defense chief appointed as ambassador
South Korea's Justice Ministry on Friday lifted the ban on leaving the country placed on former Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup, who has been named ambassador to Australia, amidst ongoing controversy surrounding the appointment. The Justice Ministry announced that its travel ban review committee has determined that Lee's formal complaint against his travel restriction was justified. The ministry elaborated that the ban on him leaving the country had been repeatedly extended without any o
Social Affairs March 8, 2024
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Tragic death of city official shows growing prevalence of doxing in Korea
The suicide of a Gimpo city official, who became the target of malicious complaints after their personal information was leaked online, has sparked controversy in Korean society. In response, some netizens are pledging to reveal the identity of cyberbullies, shedding light on the concerning prevalence of doxing in South Korea. As of Friday, the personal information of the user who revealed the late official’s name, department and phone number has been posted to many online communities. &ld
Social Affairs March 8, 2024
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Abortion in S. Korea: neither illegal nor legal
Kim, a 33-year-old woman living in Seoul, was taken by surprise when she found out she was pregnant late last year. With no intention of getting married or having a child of her own, she began searching for hospitals that would terminate the pregnancy for her. While searching online, Kim encountered numerous advertisements and blogs listing prices for abortions by vacuum aspiration. The prices varied according to the stage of pregnancy: 600,000 won ($450) before week 7 and 900,000 won before wee
Politics March 7, 2024
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Aging Korea needs foreign caregivers: report
South Korea should come up with various measures to attract foreign nationals to work here as care workers, as the country faces a shortage in the sector to care for its rapidly aging society, a report by the Bank of Korea argued, Tuesday. The cost of hiring a care worker at a nursing home or other facilities was estimated at 3.7 million won ($2,775) per month as of last year, according to the report titled “Measures to alleviate the care service labor shortage and cost burden” relea
Social Affairs March 5, 2024
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Constitutional Court upholds 52-hour work limit
The Constitutional Court has unanimously upheld the constitutionality of a law restricting the workweek to a 52-hour maximum, the court said Monday. In its decision delivered Thursday, the nine-member court unanimously ruled that the Labor Standards Act, Article 53, Section 1, specifying that the 52-hour workweek system is legitimate and appropriate as it is designed to protect the health and safety of workers by reducing actual working hours and discouraging overtime work on holidays. Under the
Social Affairs March 4, 2024
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Koreans working 200 hours fewer than decade ago: data
South Korean workers’ actual annual working hours have decreased by nearly 200 hours over 10 years, yet people here still work far longer than the average of the member nations of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. According to the statistics released by the Ministry of Employment and Labor on Sunday, the average monthly working hours of employees in South Korea stood at 156.2 hours in 2023, down 2.5 hours from 158.7 hours in 2022. In 2013, the average monthly worki
Social Affairs March 3, 2024
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[KH explains] Why is S. Korea mulling ease on marriage ban between blood relatives?
The debate on consanguineous marriage is heating up, as the government appears to be moving toward easing laws related to intrafamily marriage. Currently, South Korea prohibits marriage between blood relatives within eight degrees of relations ("chon" in Korean), according to the Civil Act, Article 809 and Article 815. That means that Koreans may not marry third cousins -- their grandparents' cousins' grandchildren -- or closer relatives. Article 809, Section 1 states that &l
Social Affairs March 3, 2024
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Seoul to launch tethered balloon ride in June
The Seoul Metropolitan Government on Wednesday announced that the city will operate a tethered helium balloon ride, dubbed Seoul’s Moon, at the Yeouido Hangang Park starting in June. The balloon will take visitors to a height of 150 meters, offering an elevated view of the capital from noon to night. Such attractions are in service at many famous tourist spots worldwide, including Disneyland Paris and the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, according to Seoul. The tethered balloon, create
Social Affairs Feb. 28, 2024
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