Does a four-day workweek fit Korea’s economic reality?
Published: 26 Feb. 2025, 00:02
The author is an emeritus professor at the Ewha Womans University school of Business.
With the inauguration of Donald Trump’s second administration, the global economy has been shaken by a wave of disruptive policies. From the moment he took office, Trump reignited trade wars, targeting Canada, Mexico and China, and tightening the noose around Korea’s key industries, including semiconductors and automobiles. Meanwhile, as the United States and China pour all their resources into the AI technology race, Korea remains embroiled in parliamentary debates over how many hours semiconductor researchers should be allowed to work.
The world’s most groundbreaking technological innovations — from Apple, Tesla and SpaceX to China’s AI disrupter, DeepSeek — have been born from the intense dedication and immersive focus of top research talent. Yet, how can Korean companies be expected to lead the innovation race while being shackled by the rigid constraints of a 52-hour workweek?
Democratic Party (DP) leader Lee Jae-myung recently touched on AI technology in his speech before the National Assembly. However, rather than addressing strategies to enhance Korea’s competitiveness in AI-driven industries, he used AI as a rationale for introducing a four-day workweek, arguing that AI advancements will reduce working hours. Given the existential crisis facing Korea’s semiconductor and high-tech industries, one can only imagine the despair this must have triggered among business leaders.
The four-day workweek has become a recurring campaign promise during election seasons. Before the 2022 presidential election, both then-DP candidate Lee Jae-myung and Justice Party candidate Sim Sang-jung pledged to implement variations of reduced work hours: a 4.5-day and a four-day workweek, respectively. Now, amid a crisis in Korea’s core industries exacerbated by the rigid 52-hour cap, Lee is once again leveraging AI as justification for further reductions in work hours. But is this proposal realistic?
A recent Bank of Korea (BOK) report titled “AI and the Korean Economy” provides valuable insights for evaluating Lee’s argument. The report highlights that AI-driven productivity gains disproportionately benefit large corporations, widening the gap between major firms and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). In other words, the AI-induced productivity improvements that Lee envisions will not be evenly distributed, making them largely inaccessible to workers in small businesses.
Even more problematic is Lee’s assumption that productivity gains naturally translate into shorter working hours. According to the same report, AI-driven efficiency improvements primarily benefit highly educated, high-income professionals, representing just 24 percent of the work force. Meanwhile, 27 percent of workers — particularly those in routine office jobs — are at risk of job displacement or reduced income due to AI adoption.
A deeper concern is that unions in AI-insulated industries may use their influence to push for a four-day workweek, despite not facing the same level of disruption. The 2018 implementation of the 52-hour workweek has already imposed significant burdens on businesses. Large corporations seek exemptions for semiconductor research and development (R&D) teams, SMEs advocate for flexible work-hour adjustments and startups push for contractual autonomy for key talent. Yet, their demands remain unmet.
If Korea fails to escape its decade-long trap of sluggish economic growth, the future will be one of job scarcity, not abundance. Even the United States, the world’s leading economy, is facing domestic job losses severe enough to reverse decades of commitment to free trade. As deglobalization gains momentum, companies will inevitably shift investments to the United States, draining jobs from Korea. If the DP’s 52-hour workweek restrictions were not limiting enough, the push for a four-day workweek will further erode Korea’s growth potential.
Out of curiosity, I reviewed the DP’s platform, which states:
“Korea stands at the threshold of a great transformation. The acceleration of AI and digitization presents both a crisis and an opportunity. In response, fostering innovation-driven growth to revitalize the nation is an urgent task of our time.”
I hope Lee Jae-myung will put these words into action.
Translated using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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