Korea is the only OECD country without statutory sickness benefits and statutory employer-provided sick pay, unpaid or paid, potentially leaving many workers experiencing temporary sickness without a job or income protection. It also deprives the Korean society from an important policy to protect people’s health, as sickness benefits and paid sick leave allow sick workers to recover at home instead of going to work and infect others. The importance of sickness benefits and paid sick leave to protect jobs, income, and health for all has become more apparent than ever before during the COVID-19 pandemic. The OECD has recommended at multiple instances in the past that the Korean government should implement statutory social protection for sick workers (OECD, 2018[1]; OECD, 2020[2]).
The Korean government now has concrete plans to implement public sickness benefits. It has announced a Pilot Project for sickness benefits in 2022 (Box 1.1). This is commendable although a full system of social protection for sick workers, in line with systems in place in most other OECD countries, will also necessitate conversations on the simultaneous adoption of statutory employer-provided sick pay.
This report aims to help Korea with the design and implementation of an equitable and adequate system of social protection for sick workers. The launch of the Pilot Project indicates clear political commitment and momentum for change. Yet, the Pilot Project’s long waiting periods and rather low benefit payments, the lack of employer-provided sick pay and the limited discussion on a return-to-work component are far away from what a comprehensive, equitable and adequate system of social protection for sick workers would look like. Korea should be more ambitious and use its position as a relative latecomer to build a comprehensive and efficient system right from the start.