Unfriendly Work Environment for Women Limits Dual-Income Households

The proportion of dual-income households with young children in Korea is way below the OECD average, while Korean husbands put in just half as much time helping out around the house as their OECD peers, according to a study released Monday, which suggests a link between the two.

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The Ministry of Employment and Labor analyzed the employment status of couples with children aged 14 or younger in Korea and other OECD members. It found that only 29.4 percent of Korean couples in this category have two incomes, compared to the OECD average of 58.5 percent.

The ministry cited as reasons Korea's notoriously long working hours and husbands' low contribution to housework. Husbands in OECD countries spend 138 minutes a day on average helping out with the household chores, while Korean men do the least on average at 45 minutes.

And some 23.1 percent of Koreans work 50 hours or more per week, nearly double the OECD average of 13 percent.

"The work environment in Korea is not friendly to women, so in many families the husband is the sole breadwinner. In order to encourage more moms to work, dads need to do more housework and the culture of long working hours should be addressed", said ministry official Kim Kyung-sun.