Government proposal to bring back benefit that ended in 2022
The South Korean government is proposing to revive the higher pay provided under the paternity bonus to match the country's standard parental leave pay, according to reports.
The paternity bonus refers to the special parental leave benefit that was granted to the second parent taking leave, Korea JoongAng Daily reported.
The benefit was in place temporarily and expired on December 31, 2022.
It was designed to provide 100% of the regular wage, capped at KRW2.5 million a month, for the first three months for the second parental leave taker, Chosun Biz reported.
This then goes down to 50%, with a cap of KRW1.2 million monthly, starting from the fourth month to the 15th month, as per the report.
However, this rate is now considered lower than the current standard parental leave benefit, which is capped between KRW1.6 million and KRW2 million monthly.
South Korea's Ministry of Employment and Labour said on Tuesday it is addressing this discrepancy by raising the paternity bonus leave pay to match the general parental leave scheme, Korea JoongAng Daily reported.
This means raising the benefit to a maximum of KRW2 million monthly for the fourth to sixth months, before lowering it to KRW1.6 million from the seventh month onward.
The revision will be applied retroactively to the parental leave period starting January 2025.
A 41-day legislative preview of the proposed revision is currently being held until July 7.
The paternity bonus was first introduced in a bid to promote shared childcare responsibilities, as South Korea was recognised for having the lowest birth rate worldwide.
In 2024, the country's fertility rate went up to 0.75, its first increase in nine years, following a variety of measures from the government and businesses, including the so-called "baby bonus" for workers, Reuters reported.
Among its recent measures to further boost its low birthrate are enabling 70% of working fathers to take paternity leave by 2030, Korea JoongAng Daily reported. It also plans to reduce to half the ratio of women who are leaving the workforce after childbirth by 2030.
