[THE INVESTOR] There is a saying, “Money does not grow on trees.” One has to work really hard to earn it.

But making an honest buck in this age of low interest rates and low growth has become harder than ever.

It is not as if Koreans do not work hard. In fact, Koreans work the longest hours after Mexicans among member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Koreans worked 2,124 hours in 2014, according to the latest data.

Working long hours does not necessarily mean that they work hard. But still, average working class employees put a lot of hours into their daily jobs, more so than spending time with their family at home during the weekends.

Even with a job that provides a monthly salary, few get by trying to buy a house, and most have second thoughts about having a child even after getting married. As a result, the Korean economy is facing low birth rate and a rapidly aging population, with growing social warning signs of increasing elderly poverty and inequality.

The middle working class that should constitute the backbone of the Korean economy is at a crossroads as the country enters a low-growth period with its traditional manufacturing industries led by conglomerates running out of steam.

Average employee wages in Korea have not really noticeably increased over the years, as growth and inflation have been slowing. Last year, Korea’s real wages increased 2.7 percent last year. This was the first time the country saw its average wage increase over its gross domestic product growth of 2.6 percent since 2012, according to the Ministry of Employment and Labor. The inflation rate barely reaches above 1 percent.

Korea has low inflation, slow wage growth, slow productivity, slow growth and low youth employment, while facing an aging population and growing inequality. Even with expansionary fiscal stimulus or low interest rates, not many people, especially in the middle class have been able to see monetary benefits.

“Productivity growth has slowed markedly, slowing the rise of incomes and well-being. This calls for ambitious reforms to strengthen competition and raise efficiency in low productivity services and in small and medium enterprises,” the OECD said in a report.

How can average hardworking people boost their savings and assets with the income they earn in dire circumstances? Should they take out another mortgage to pay down their debt while putting their kids through college? They also need to think about saving for their retirement, because the national pension contributed from the portion of their monthly salaries alone will not be enough to cover their expenses in later years.

Some say stocks and government bonds are good investment options during low growth and interest rates, but these also come with certain risks when the corporate sector is going through hardship and restructuring.

By Park Hyong-ki (hkp@heraldcorp.com)