The South Korean authorities has introduced a plan that can set them forward of each different nation on the earth and miles forward of the US for its paid depart coverage.
Introduced on Jan. 9, South Korea’s Employment and Labor Minister Lee Jeong-sik unveiled plans the federal government is hoping will make life higher for South Koreans and reverse the nation’s record-low beginning charge, VICE explains. The plan will give each dad and mom 18 months every of paid depart — representing the longest paternity depart coverage for males on the earth.
“{Couples} will every be allowed to take as much as a 12 months and a half off in parental depart, up from the present one 12 months,” VICE experiences. “Each dad and mom are eligible as long as they’re working, although the pay construction for this new allowance is but to be confirmed.”
The brand new paid depart construction plan hasn’t but been put to vote, however South Korea can have one of the best paternity depart on the earth if it passes. And it’ll add to what’s already fairly beneficiant parental depart, which is the longest in Asia, VICE shares.
The proposed coverage is a stark reminder that the U.S. doesn’t even come near South Korea’s proposed parental depart. In actuality, the U.S. ranks second to final out of 197 nations in the case of paid depart, narrowly edging out Micronesia, which has a inhabitants of simply over 115,000 individuals. The USA, which is among the many wealthiest nations on the earth, stands virtually alone in not providing this fundamental profit for brand new dad and mom — not even a month of paid depart is obtainable to working dad and mom federally.
Will the U.S. ever get near South Korea’s potential coverage? Not going, however we are able to nonetheless hope. President Joe Biden tried to push laws in 2021 that might have given paid parental depart for each dad and mom for as much as 4 weeks. The plans have been a part of his main spending packages in the course of the starting of the COVID-19 pandemic. Nonetheless, the plans rapidly fell aside as a result of partisan stonewalling, and the legislative concern hasn’t taken the highlight since then, leaving dad and mom with no paid depart coverage at work within the mud.
