From January 1, 2025, the grace period for the 52-hour workweek rule has been officially ended for businesses with five to 30 employees. (Yonhap News TV)
SEOUL, Feb. 17 (Korea Bizwire) — Five years after the implementation of South Korea’s 52-hour workweek, three out of four corporate research divisions report declining research and development (R&D) performance, according to a new survey.
The findings, released on February 16 by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) in collaboration with the Korea Industrial Technology Association (KOITA), highlight growing concerns that rigid work-hour regulations may be stifling innovation in key industries, including semiconductors.
Among the 500 companies surveyed, 75.8% stated that R&D output had decreased since the policy’s introduction. The most impacted areas were new product development (45.2%), existing product improvements (34.6%), talent development (28.5%), and new manufacturing process innovations (25.3%).
The study suggests that despite the need for structural improvements in R&D-related labor policies, existing regulatory conditions remain unchanged. South Korea’s ranking in the IMD World Competitiveness Center’s index for “scientific research laws supporting innovation” has remained low, improving only slightly from 37th out of 63 countries in 2018 to 35th out of 67 in 2024.
More than half of the surveyed companies (53.5%) reported that the 52-hour cap had extended R&D project timelines. Of those, 69.8% said the delay exceeded 10% of the original schedule.
The exterior view of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry building. (Image provided by KCCI)
While flexible work arrangements have been introduced as a countermeasure, only 37.8% of companies have adopted them, signaling their limited effectiveness. Instead, 69.4% of companies expressed a preference for a system that allows autonomous work-hour management through labor-management agreements.
Other suggested solutions included allowing an additional eight hours of overtime for R&D (32.5%) and shifting overtime calculations from a weekly to a monthly, quarterly, or annual basis (23.4%).
“With rapid industrial transformations demanding aggressive technological innovation, securing flexible work hours for R&D is crucial, especially in key industries like semiconductors,” said Kim Jong-hoon, executive director of KOITA.
Lee Jong-myung, head of industrial innovation at KCCI, added, “Given the continuity and intensity required for R&D, South Korea must strike a balance between maintaining global competitiveness and protecting vulnerable workers from excessive hours.”
The findings reignite debate over whether South Korea’s rigid work-hour policy should be adjusted to accommodate high-skilled industries, where innovation speed is a decisive factor in global competition.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
