Two-thirds of Koreans contacted for work after hours: survey
A recent survey shows that two-thirds of employees in South Korea receive work-related calls or messages outside office hours. According to a study by Global Research, 66 percent of workers said their bosses contacted them after work, on weekends, or during holidays at least once in the past year.
The survey included 1,000 South Koreans aged 19 and older and was conducted in October 2025. About 21 percent said they were contacted one to three times per month. Around 20 percent said it happened once or twice per week. About 31 percent said they received work messages after 10 p.m.
When contacted, 30.5 percent said they handled the request immediately by phone or online. Meanwhile, 60.6 percent said they waited until the next working day to respond. Only 8.9 percent said they did not reply at all. More than 45 percent said the messages were not urgent.
More than 80 percent of respondents said they support creating a law to limit after-hours work contact. A workers’ rights group called Workplace Gapjil 119 said more employees are complaining about stress and fatigue because they are always connected to work.
Several bills have been proposed to guarantee the “right to disconnect,” but previous attempts failed in the National Assembly. Currently, two new bills are being discussed. One was introduced by Rep. Park Hong-bae of the Democratic Party of Korea, and another by Rep. Kim Wi-sang of the People Power Party.
Edited using generative AI tools.
Source : https://www.koreaherald.com/article/10679839 |
