98% of firms in Seoul parental-leave support project give it positive marks

Nearly all companies participating in a Seoul Metropolitan Government project to support child-friendly workplaces gave the initiative positive marks, a new survey shows.

The project supports small and medium-sized enterprises in Seoul that operate parenting-friendly policies such as maternity leave and parental leave, as well as the workers who use them. This year, the city overhauled the support structure to provide subsidies directly to companies that actually run such policies, on top of existing support for individual workers.

Seoul announced Sunday that 97.5 percent of the 283 participating companies surveyed from June 29 to July 27 gave a positive assessment of the shift toward direct corporate subsidies.

Some 92.9 percent said the corporate grants had helped spread a work-life balance culture, while 91 percent said the subsidies had eased the burden of labor costs.

Looking at how the policies were actually used, 60.8 percent of participating companies reported that female workers took parental leave immediately after maternity leave. Male workers used spousal birth leave at 39.2 percent of the companies, and 14.1 percent of companies saw male workers go on to take parental leave as well.

The city said those figures suggest the project has meaningfully promoted childbirth and childcare support policies, noting that a 2024 Ministry of Employment and Labor survey found only 16.7 percent of workplaces had female workers take parental leave directly after maternity leave, and just 9.3 percent had male workers use spousal birth leave.

Alongside the main project, the city also piloted a reduced-hours program for parents of young children this year. Under the pilot, companies that allow parents to cut their workday by one hour receive a subsidy of up to 300,000 won ($224) per worker per month, enabling employees at small and medium-sized enterprises to use the reduced-hours option without feeling pressured not to.

An effectiveness analysis of the pilot found that average daily direct childcare time rose from 3.37 hours before the program to 3.58 hours after, while life satisfaction scores climbed from 6.58 to 7.53 out of 10.

Despite the shorter working hours, the time workers spent focused on their tasks actually increased, from 5.21 hours to 5.32 hours. Among workers who used the reduced-hours option at pilot companies, 61 percent were men, and 65.2 percent were middle managers or above.

Some 88.2 percent of companies in the pilot gave a positive assessment, saying the reduced-hours policy had helped improve organizational culture and work practices and had supported the retention and long-term employment of skilled staff.

Ma Chae-suk, head of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Women and Family Bureau, said a work-life balance culture must take root if the city is to sustain this year's rebound in its birth rate. "Having confirmed that the project has brought positive change for both companies and workers, we will strengthen support for creating a parenting-friendly work environment," she said.