“All this hard-earned money… and I’ll just end up spending it on hospital bills.” This kind of lament is likely what most office workers who have to push through illness are thinking. (Image supported by ChatGPT)
SEOUL, May 26 (Korea Bizwire) — When 29-year-old logistics worker Min-jun Lee came down with a high fever and chills last winter, he knew he needed rest. What he didn’t have, however, was a choice. “There’s no such thing as paid sick leave in my job,” he said. “If I don’t show up, I don’t get paid. It’s that simple.”
Lee’s story is not uncommon in South Korea, where a new survey has revealed a troubling reality: nearly 40% of workers report they cannot take paid sick leave—even when they’re ill.
The survey, commissioned by labor advocacy group Workplace Gapjil 119 and conducted by Global Research, polled 1,000 Korean workers aged 19 and above in February 2025. The findings point to a significant gap in labor protections, particularly in the private sector and among employees of small businesses.
While civil servants and employees of public institutions were the least affected—with just 16.5% saying they lacked access to paid sick leave—those working in companies with fewer than five people faced a starkly different reality. In those workplaces, nearly half (46.8%) said they had no right to paid leave when ill.
Nearly 40% of Korean Workers Lack Paid Sick Leave, Survey Finds (Image supported by ChatGPT)
The implications go beyond workplace inconvenience. Of the 280 respondents who said they had contracted flu or another infectious disease in the past year, almost half (48.9%) reported they couldn’t take time off to recover.
For many, that meant working through illness—risking their own health and the health of others.
At the heart of the issue is the absence of a universal sangbyeong sudang system—a national sickness benefit that would offer income support to workers sidelined by non-work-related illness or injury.
Although the government began pilot programs in recent years, implementation remains limited. Yet public sentiment is clear: over 80% of respondents in the survey expressed strong support for full-scale adoption of the program.
“Without paid sick leave or income protection, workers—especially in precarious jobs—are forced to choose between their health and their livelihood,” said Choi Hye-in, a labor attorney with Workplace Gapjil 119. “This is not just a labor issue. It’s a public health issue.”
Labor advocates argue that without institutional reform, the health gap between public and private sector workers will continue to grow, creating an unequal and unsustainable system.
As Korea navigates the uncertainties of a post-pandemic economy and continues efforts to rebuild its social safety net, the question is no longer just whether the country can afford a national sickness benefit—but whether it can afford not to have one.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
