Working Women's Support Network

Why this matters in South Korea

Women's employment in South Korea still traces an 'M-curve': participation rises through the twenties, falls sharply in the early to mid thirties when many women marry and have children, and only partly recovers later. Those who return after a career break usually come back to lower-paid, less secure jobs than the ones they left. Long working hours, a workplace culture that penalizes leave and an uneven division of care at home make combining work and young children difficult.

The consequences reach well beyond individual families. The country has the lowest fertility rate in the world, and surveys of young adults frequently cite childcare costs and fear of career damage as reasons to delay or forgo children. Public childcare has expanded greatly, but gaps remain for early mornings, evenings, sick days and school holidays, which are exactly the hours a returning mother needs covered to keep a new job.

What your gift pays for

• One-to-one job counseling for women returning to work after a career break
• Vocational courses matched to local labor demand for women retraining after time at home
• Paid internship placements with employers that help women rebuild recent work experience
• Follow-up support after hiring so returning workers settle into their new jobs