▲ Ryu Ki-jung, executive director of the Korea Enterprises Federation (left), and Ryu Ki-seop, secretary-general of the Federation of Korean Trade Unions, listen to remarks during the 9th plenary session of the Minimum Wage Commission held at the Government Complex Sejong on the 25th.
Deliberations to determine next year's minimum wage have missed the legal deadline due to differences in opinion between labor and management, marking another year where a decision was not reached within the required timeframe.
The Minimum Wage Commission is holding its 10th plenary session today (June 30) at 3:00 p.m. at the Government Complex Sejong to continue discussions on the minimum wage level to be applied in 2027.
The legal deadline for minimum wage deliberations is 90 days from the date the Minister of Employment and Labor requests the review.
This year, the deadline was midnight yesterday (June 29).
However, as the gap between labor and management could not be narrowed, the deadline was missed once again this year.
Since the implementation of the minimum wage system in 1988, the deadline has been met only nine times.
Even though the legal deadline has passed, the Minimum Wage Commission must submit the minimum wage proposal to the Minister of Employment and Labor by mid-July, considering the remaining administrative procedures.
Given this, it is expected that a final agreement will not be reached until mid-July this year as well.
The gap between the initial demands of the labor and management sides is 1,680 won.
The labor side proposed 12,000 won, a 16.3% increase from this year's minimum wage of 10,320 won, while the management side demanded a freeze at 10,320 won.
Both sides are scheduled to present their first revised proposals as soon as the session opens today.
Looking at the minimum wage (hourly rate) and year-on-year increase rates over the past five years: 9,160 won (5.05%) in 2022, 9,620 won (5.0%) in 2023, 9,860 won (2.5%) in 2024, 10,030 won (1.7%) in 2025, and 10,320 won (2.9%) in 2026.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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