Kim Young-hoon warns against exploiting workers' passion through illegal flat-rate pay abuse

"Failing to pay workers the wages they are owed for actual hours worked — simply because a flat-rate pay contract is in place — is a clear violation of labor law."

Minister of Employment and Labor Kim Young-hoon issued the warning Thursday at an outdoor forum held at Gasan Digital Complex in Geumcheon-gu, Seoul, targeting the abuse of flat-rate pay arrangements. Kim also said the practice of extracting "free labor" by exploiting young workers' passion must be stamped out.

The forum was organized to mark two months since the ministry's guidelines on preventing flat-rate pay abuse — aimed at eliminating unpaid labor — took effect on April 9. Held around lunchtime, the event drew office workers from nearby businesses and focused on the difficulties employees face under flat-rate pay arrangements and ways to improve the system.

Kim said eradicating the misuse of flat-rate pay was essential for the economy's broader transition. "To move our economy away from sheer volume of input and toward quality, innovation-driven labor, we must first establish the most basic principle: that workers are fairly compensated for the work they do," he said.

Beyond flat-rate pay, the forum also addressed a range of workplace grievances, including the use of paid annual leave, after-hours work messages and the so-called "right to disconnect." Participants shared their views on working-hour management, the right to rest and improving workplace culture, conveying their concerns directly to the ministry.

"If workers feel too self-conscious to take annual leave freely, or their hearts sink every time a work message arrives after hours, then even the best policies are useless," Kim said. He urged young workers to share their genuine workplace concerns without holding back.

About 20 office workers employed at businesses in Gasan Digital Complex attended the event. Ministry representatives included Kim, the labor policy director, the head of the wage and working-hours policy division, and the chief of the Seoul Gwanak branch office.

The ministry plans to strengthen the anonymous reporting center dedicated to flat-rate pay abuse. It will publicize the reporting channel through a mobile promotional bus and anonymous online worker communities, and conduct rolling regional inspections to scrutinize workplaces flagged through anonymous tips.

The ministry will also support swift passage of a pending amendment to the Labor Standards Act before the National Assembly, while taking strict action and providing corrective guidance on violations uncovered through a labor inspection campaign under way since February.

The ministry will further strengthen working-hour record-keeping and management systems at individual workplaces by auditing payroll ledgers and pay stub issuance practices. Workplace grievances and policy improvement suggestions raised at the forum will also be reflected in future labor inspections and policymaking, it added.