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Companies cannot offer substitute time off to employees who work Labor Day, says gov't

Published: 16 Apr. 2026, 17:51 Updated: 16 Apr. 2026, 18:25

Union members call on the government to guarantee that public sector employees will also get Labor Day off during a rally in front of the National Assembly on March 18, days before a bill designating it as a public holiday was passed. [YONHAP]

Companies cannot offer employees substitute time for working Labor Day this year and must pay them if they work on the holiday, the Ministry of Employment and Labor said Thursday.

The May 1 holiday, celebrated globally as International Workers' Day, was designated a public holiday in Korea for the first time this year.

But unlike holidays such as Memorial Day or Liberation Day — which are governed by regulations on public holidays at government offices — Labor Day is anchored in separate legislation that prevents companies from granting a substitute day off.

“Labor Day is specified as a paid holiday under a separate law, and therefore cannot be replaced with another day off,” the ministry said.

Until now, the holiday had been observed mainly in the private sector. This year marks the first time civil servants and other public-sector employees will also be entitled to the day off.

For most other public holidays, employers and employee representatives can agree in writing to shift the day off to another date. In such cases, work performed on the holiday is treated as a regular workday, meaning employers are not required to pay additional compensation.

However, Labor Day operates differently as it is explicitly defined as a paid holiday intended to recognize workers’ contributions. As such, employees who work that day are entitled to higher pay.

For employees paid hourly or daily, total compensation can reach up to 2.5 times their usual daily wage because they are entitled not only to their usual rate but also to a 50-percent holiday premium and holiday compensation equivalent to their daily wage.

A worker who typically earns 100,000 won ($68) a day would thus receive 250,000 won by working on May 1.

Salaried workers, whose base pay already includes paid holidays, receive an additional 150 percent — their daily wage plus a 50 percent holiday premium — if they work, while those who take the day off receive their regular pay.

Even workplaces with fewer than five employees — which are exempt from some provisions of the Labor Standards Act — must treat Labor Day as a paid holiday. However, they are not required to provide the additional 50 percent holiday premium to their employees who work that day.

Employers who fail to comply face penalties under the Labor Standards Act, including up to three years in prison or fines of up to 30 million won.

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 KIM JI-HYE [[email protected]]