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Still worst in the OECD, Korea's gender wage gap shrinks little by little

Published: 29 Aug. 2025, 16:58

Human rights organizations hold a press conference in front of the Admiral Yi Sun-sin statue in Gwanghwamun Plaza in Jongno District, central Seoul, on March 6, ahead of International Women’s Day, announcing the results of an online survey on “the worst gender-based workplace abuses.” [YONHAP]

Women still earn far less than men in Korea compared to any other developed nation, even as the gender pay gap has narrowed in recent years.

Korea's gender pay gap remains the largest among the 35 member states of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), according to data released Friday by the Korean Women’s Development Institute (KWDI) to mark Gender Equality Week.

The institute reported that the average monthly wage gap between men and women stood at 29 percent in 2024, up to six times wider than in Australia at 10.7 percent, in Canada at 16.5 percent, in Sweden at 7.5 percent and in Norway at 4.7 percent.

The OECD calculated Korea’s gender pay gap at 29.3 percent in 2023, compared with the organization's average of 11.3 percent.

From 2018 to 2023, Korea’s pay gap shrank from 34.1 percent to 29.3 percent, a 4.8 percentage point decrease. By comparison, the OECD average fell by 1.7 percentage points in the same period, suggesting Korea has improved at a faster pace.

“The fact that Korea’s gender pay gap has declined more quickly than the OECD average over the past five years represents meaningful progress," said Kim Jong-sook, president of KWDI.

"But Korea still has the widest gap among member states, so efforts must continue to improve the quality of women’s employment and to create a more equal labor market,” Kim added.

An employee of a restaurant works on International Equal Pay Day in Seoul on Sept. 18, 2024. [EPA/YONHAP]

The report also highlighted persistent disparities in low-wage work. In 2024, 23.8 percent of women in Korea were low-paid workers compared to 11.1 percent of men. This means one in four women fell into the category compared with one in 10 men.

In 2023, 24.5 percent of Korean women were in low-wage jobs, 13.6 percentage points higher than men and 7.3 percentage points above the OECD average.

The institute explained that “low pay gaps and less low-wage work in Nordic and Western European countries reflect effective institutional and policy support.”

Officials from the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions hold a press conference in front of the Sejong Center in Jongno District, central Seoul, on May 28, calling for five key pledges to achieve gender equality in the workplace ahead of Korea's 2025 presidential election. [NEWS1]

Women’s representation in leadership remains limited. In 2024, only 17.5 percent of managers in Korea were women, far below the OECD average of 30 to 40 percent. France reported 38.9 percent, Germany 28.6 percent and Norway 33.7 percent in 2023, all significantly higher than Korea.

Political representation also lags. In 2025, women made up 20.3 percent of lawmakers in Korea, compared to 46 percent in Iceland, 45.5 percent in Finland and 36.2 percent in France.

President Lee Jae Myung, during his campaign in May, pledged to introduce a mandatory “equal pay disclosure system” to address wage disparities. The plan was included in the 123 national policy tasks announced on Aug. 13 by the State Affairs Planning Committee.

According to the draft of the government’s five-year plan, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family will work to expand support for women’s economic participation in order to narrow the gender wage gap.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY CHAE HYE-SEON [[email protected]]