Small firms begin to implement 52-hour workweek

Small businesses with five to 49 employees began to implement a 52-hour workweek Thursday as mandated by law. Under a revision to the Labor Standards Act, the government began enforcing the 52-hour workweek system in 2018, starting with firms with 300 or more employees in July of that year. In January 2020, the system began to be applied to firms with 50 to 299 employees, and on Thursday, to smaller businesses. South Korea has among the longest working hours among the member states of the Org

Social AffairsJuly 1, 2021

US aware of NK leader Kim's remarks on 'grave incident' in anti-pandemic steps: State Dept.

WASHINGTON -- The United States is aware of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's remarks about a serious incident with regard to the North's fight against the new coronavirus, a State Department spokesperson said Wednesday. Jalina Porter, principal deputy spokesperson for the department, however, offered no immediate US plans to provide humanitarian assistance, including COVID-19 vaccine, to the impoverished North. "We are certainly aware of the report -- what Kim Jong-un has said -- but we

North KoreaJuly 1, 2021

[Graphic News] Sales of fiction, poetry increase amid pandemic

　Sales of fiction and poetry books at leading online bookstore Yes24 have grown this year as people spend more time at home amid the coronavirus pandemic, the company said. 　The sales volume of novels, poetry and dramas has risen 8.3 percent year-on-year so far this year, Yes24 announced. Their sales increased 21.4 percent year-on-year last year after decreasing 9.6 percent in 2019. 　Among this year’s 100 bestsellers, 13 titles belonged to the category, which came in third after busi

NationalJuly 1, 2021

New cases in 700s for 2nd day, capital area at risk of resurgence

South Korea's daily new virus cases remained in the 700s for the second day Thursday as the greater Seoul area is facing a potential resurgence in new infections, which led authorities to push back eased virus restrictions. The country reported 762 more COVID-19 cases, including 712 local infections, raising the total caseload to 157,723, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The daily caseload soared to an over two-month high Wednesday due to a series of cluster infecti

Social AffairsJuly 1, 2021

NK leader vows to elevate relations with China to new strategic point

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un vowed to elevate relations with China to a new strategic point as he sent a congratulatory message to Chinese President Xi Jinping to mark the 100th anniversary of the Communist Party of China, state media said Thursday. In an apparent reference to the deepening Sino-US rivalry, Kim also said in the message that "hostile forces" are engaged in "vicious slander and all-round pressure" upon China, but they can "never check the on-going adva

North KoreaJuly 1, 2021

USFK reports 10 virus cases across country as cluster infections continue

Nine American service members and a dependent have tested positive for the new coronavirus in the latest in a series of infections reported at US military bases here, US Forces Korea (USFK) said Thursday. Six of the infections were reported from Camp Casey in Dongducheon, 40 kilometers north of Seoul; two from K-16 Air Base in Seongnam, just south of the capital; and one each from Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, 70 km south of Seoul, and Camp Carroll in the southeastern county of Chilgok, accordi

Social AffairsJuly 1, 2021

S. Korea, UN office hold joint youth forum on disarmament, nonproliferation

South Korea and the UN disarmament office held a joint forum this week involving young people from around the world to discuss and raise awareness about disarmament and nonproliferation, the foreign ministry said Thursday. The two-day forum, which ended Wednesday, marked the first of its kind that South Korea and the UN office has co-hosted on the disarmament and nonproliferation issues for younger generations. Seoul has been championing the agenda, with last year's adoption by a UN committee

Foreign AffairsJuly 1, 2021

Gyeonggi Gov. Lee Jae-myung launches presidential bid, vowing to reduce inequality

Gyeonggi Gov. Lee Jae-myung officially launched his high-profile presidential campaign Thursday, pledging to alleviate inequality between the powerful and the weak. The front-runner by a wide margin among the nine contenders of the ruling Democratic Party (DP), Lee announced his bid to run in the March 9 presidential election through a prerecorded video, released on YouTube and other online platforms, in consideration of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. "Through the politics of moderating t

PoliticsJuly 1, 2021

Ex-minister indicted over alleged abuse of power in reactor shutdown decision

Prosecutors indicted a former industry minister and a former presidential secretary Wednesday for their alleged abuse of authority and interference with business in the process of the government's decision to close a decades-old nuclear power plant.    The Daejeon District Prosecutors Office has been looking into suspicions former minister Paik Un-gyu and former presidential aide Chae Hee-bong abused their power in the viability assessment of Wolsong-1, the nation's second-oldest nu

Social AffairsJune 30, 2021

Vaccinated overseas arrivals exempted from two-week quarantine in Korea

People who have been vaccinated overseas against COVID-19 will be exempted from the mandatory two-week quarantine upon arrival in South Korea starting Thursday.  The new policy applies to Korean nationals and foreigners alike if they are entering Korea to do important business or serve the public interest, for academic or humanitarian purposes, or to visit immediate family.  Previously, Korea waived the self-isolation rule only for those vaccinated in Korea starting May 5.  To

Foreign AffairsJune 30, 2021

[Herald Interview] Clumsy probe bred conspiracy theories, Cheonan captain says

Conspiracy theories over the 2010 sinking of the warship Cheonan still hold sway over many South Koreans because Seoul bungled the initial probe, the ship’s former captain says. A joint investigation by South Korea, the US, the UK, Australia and Sweden in May 2010, two months after the sinking, found that the North attacked the South’s corvette, leaving 46 seamen dead. North Korea has denied any involvement. Some in South Korea believe there could be another explanation. “Th

DefenseJune 30, 2021

Seoul keeps 4-person cap on private gatherings

The Seoul metropolitan government said Wednesday it is keeping a four-person cap on private gatherings amid a sharp increase in COVID-19 cases in the city, just hours before the rule was set to be relaxed. The decision was reached at an emergency virtual meeting between Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon and the heads of all 25 local ward offices. The city of Seoul registered 375 new cases Tuesday, its biggest daily increase this year, two days before it was set to raise the cap on private gatherings from

PoliticsJune 30, 2021

S. Korea-US relationship moved beyond security alliance to comprehensive, global partnership: Moon

President Moon Jae-in assessed Wednesday that South Korea's relationship with the United States has evolved from a traditional military-and-security-based alliance to that of a comprehensive and global partnership. Moon shared his views on the state of the Seoul-Washington alliance in a lunch meeting with the heads of constitutional institutions -- the National Assembly speaker, the Supreme Court chief justice, the Constitutional Court chief and the prime minister -- at Cheong Wa Dae. The pres

PoliticsJune 30, 2021

95.6% of vaccinated people say they recommend receiving shots: poll

Nine out of 10 people who have been vaccinated said they would recommend that their families and friends receive shots, a government survey showed Wednesday. The poll, jointly conducted by the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters and the culture ministry, showed that 95.6 percent were favorable toward receiving COVID-19 vaccines. The share was up 10.4 percentage points from the same survey conducted last month. Some 1,000 adults aged 18 and older took part in the latest su

Social AffairsJune 30, 2021

Seoul city reports this year's biggest jump in new coronavirus cases

The city of Seoul on Wednesday reported this year's biggest daily increase in new coronavirus cases, one day before the nation loosens social distancing rules. The metropolitan government said 375 new cases were registered Tuesday, up 170 from the previous day. The previous highest number of daily cases this year was 329, set on Jan. 3. Coronavirus infections in the capital soared late last year, reporting a record 552 daily cases on Dec. 24. The number was reduced to 100-200 levels this spri

Social AffairsJune 30, 2021

Top court upholds 4-year prison term for ex-justice minister's nephew for financial crimes

The top court on Wednesday confirmed a four-year prison sentence for a nephew of former Justice Minister Cho Kuk for embezzlement and other financial crimes. The Supreme Court upheld the verdict handed down to Cho Beom-dong by an appellate court, in which he was sentenced to four years in prison and a fine of 50 million won ($41,570) on charges including embezzlement, breach of trust and a violation of capital market law. The court also maintained the lower court's decision to clear him of mos

Social AffairsJune 30, 2021

No. of NK defectors entering resettlement center drops 85% on year to 57 in first half

Fifty-seven newly arrived North Korean defectors were admitted to the government-run resettlement education center in the first half of the year, an 85 percent drop from a year earlier amid the North's anti-coronavirus border closure, an official said Wednesday. During the same period last year, 380 North Korean defectors entered the Hanawon resettlement center. "The number of people entering Hanawon fell sharply as countries took antivirus measures, including blocking arrivals and restri

North KoreaJune 30, 2021

Court extends SsangYong's rehabilitation plan deadline until Sept.

The Seoul Bankruptcy Court said Wednesday it has accepted SsangYong Motor Corp.'s request to extend the deadline for its rehabilitation plan by two months until Sept. 1 considering its ongoing sales process. The bankruptcy court in April put the debt-laden automaker under court receivership, a step short of bankruptcy, and ordered it to submit its rehabilitation plan by July 1. On Monday, SsangYong opened an auction for its majority stake after its Indian parent Mahindra & Mahindra faile

Social AffairsJune 30, 2021

Special-type workers to benefit from employment insurance from July

Non-standard contract employees, such as parcel delivery workers, home tutors and insurance salespersons, will be newly included among employment insurance beneficiaries, beginning in July, the Ministry of Employment and Labor said Wednesday. The ministry said a revision of the Employment Insurance Act aimed at making workers in 12 non-standard forms of employment eligible for employment insurance is to take effect Thursday. Non-standard contract employees refer to workers of special employmen

PoliticsJune 30, 2021

Probe under way into hacking attempts against aircraft manufacturer KAI

Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI), South Korea's sole aircraft manufacturer, suffered hacking attempts, and many documents are believed to have been leaked, possibly including sensitive data on major projects, sources said Wednesday. KAI's system appeared to have been hacked twice this year by unidentified entities, and "a large quantity of documents" seems to have been leaked, according to the sources. Some say that the breached data might include sensitive information about major d

DefenseJune 30, 2021