Insights on the latest Korean labor law / HR issues for foreign companies and residents
HR & Korean Labor Compliance
Multinational companies operating in Korea increasingly engage workers on a project-by-project basis — designers, engineers, content producers. Many of these arrangements are labeled "freelance" and documented with service agreements (용역계약) or commission contracts (위탁계약) rather than employment contracts. The workers are invoiced at 3.3% withholding tax
HR & Korean Labor Compliance
Recently, Seoul High Court issued a judgment on fixed-term employees and its extension: two foreign English instructors employed by a major Korean conglomerate accumulated more than two years of continuous service, and when the company declined to renew, a court declared the terminations void. This is an important case
HR & Korean Labor Compliance
Once the hiring decision is made, many HR teams treat the file as being closed: what happens to the applicants’ documents. The law splits an employer's post-decision paperwork obligations into three separate tracks — one for applicants who were not hired, one for the records of those who
HR & Korean Labor Compliance
Hiring in Korea is rarely a single signature on one page. Instead, several documents typically pass across the table when an employee joins, and each one does a different job. Knowing them keeps the onboarding process compliant. This is a high-level map of the documents most employers should have
HR & Korean Labor Compliance
In Korea, the difference between an officer and an employee must be noted. Basically, it determines which set of protective rules governs the end of the relationship. It is not so safe to assume that a “director” or “VP” automatically sits outside labor law. The starting principle: a mandate, not
HR & Korean Labor Compliance
Many employers in Korea treat the probationary period as a no-risk trial: if the new hire does not work out, the company simply consider declining to make the hire permanent. But under Korean law, declining to confirm a probationary employee would constitute a dismissal, not a passive non-renewal.
HR & Korean Labor Compliance
You've found the right candidate, extended an offer, and received their acceptance. Then something happens: a hiring freeze, a failed background check, a reference that raises concerns. Can you withdraw the offer? In Korea, the answer is not simple. Korean courts treat an accepted job offer not as
HR & Korean Labor Compliance
Hiring someone new always carries uncertainty. Korean labor law acknowledges this reality by permitting a probationary period — a defined window during which both the employer and the new hire can assess fit before the employment relationship becomes fully established. But it should be noted that “probationary" does not mean
HR & Korean Labor Compliance
One of the most common misunderstandings I encounter, from both HR teams at foreign-invested companies and individual foreign nationals working in Korea, sounds something like this: "Our employment contract is governed by the laws of our home country, so Korean labor law doesn't really apply to
HR & Korean Labor Compliance
A teacher accepts a position at a language institute in Seoul. The school emails over a one-page "offer letter": job title, monthly salary, start date, a line about housing, a friendly note welcoming them aboard. They sign it, book a flight, and arrive expecting that document to
HR & Korean Labor Compliance
In our previous installment, we broke down the requirements for drafting a lawful employment contract under Korean law. You might assume that as long as individual contracts are signed, your workplace compliance is covered. However, under the Labor Standards Act (‘LSA’), reaching a specific team size triggers an entirely new
HR & Korean Labor Compliance
(Korea Hiring Law Series — Part 4 of the Hiring Chapter) In our previous installment, we explored the regulatory boundaries governing background and reference checks in Korea. Now, the next step is the employment contract after the company has finally decided the candidate to hire. For many global HR professionals, the