Company Size Influences Access to Parental Leave in South Korea

According to a recent Korean survey, the size of a business plays a decisive role in whether employees can utilize parental or reduced‑hour leave. In firms with fewer than five staff members, more than 68 percent of workers said they encounter obstacles, whereas in enterprises employing 300 or more people the problem drops to just over 30 percent.

The findings suggest that larger organizations are better equipped to implement the legal frameworks for parental leave, offering clearer procedures and less fear of retaliation. Smaller companies, often lacking dedicated HR resources, may rely on informal decision‑making that discourages employees from requesting time off to care for children.

Policy analysts argue that targeted support for small and medium‑sized enterprises could bridge the gap and help sustain the recent gains in South Korea's birth rate.