Following our newsletter dated January 25, 2023 (Link) concerning “Anticipated Plan for Labor Inspection for 2023,” we are writing to provide you with additional information on the status of labor inspections this year based on a recent press release by the Ministry of Employment and Labor (“MOEL”).

1.   Regular Inspection
 

As a general practice, regular labor inspections are conducted in the first half and second half of each year, and for labor inspections in the first half of the year, the Labor Office sends official letters to employers subject to regular labor inspections starting from March.  In 2023, businesses that (i) employ a large number of vulnerable groups, such as young employees, women or foreign laborers, (ii) employ a large number of non-regular workers (fixed-term and part-time workers, subcontracted workers, etc.), or (iii) have not undergone a regular labor inspection for the past three years, are likely to be selected for a regular labor inspection.
 

2.   Ad Hoc Inspection
 

The MOEL announced that, in order to establish law and order through labor inspections, it will focus on “five major illegal practices,” namely, (i) the misuse/abuse of the comprehensive wage system or the fixed overtime allowance, (ii) delaying the payment of wages, (iii) unfair labor practices, (iv) workplace harassment and (v) unfair hiring.  Accordingly, each Regional Labor Office has selected certain industries or practices that they will focus on for ad hoc labor inspections in 2023:
 

• Seoul Regional Labor Office: multiplex movie theaters, hotels and wedding convention centers, and 498 tech companies where a large number of young workers are employed and where the demand for labor is increasing due to the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions.

• Jungbu Regional Labor Office, Busan Regional Labor Office and Gwangju Regional Labor Office: acts of workplace harassment or sexual harassment at small and medium-sized financial institutions.
   

3.   Special Inspection
 

Under the its zero tolerance policy, the MOEL plans to conduct special labor inspections on businesses that have been subject to public criticism due to serious violations of laws, such as repeatedly delaying the payment of wages or occurrences of sexual harassment or workplace harassment.  Additionally, observing that a toxic corporate culture contributes to occurrences of sexual harassment or workplace harassment, the MOEL plans to assess the state of a company’s workplace culture by conducting employee surveys during the special inspection and encourage improvement of the company’s workplace culture.
 

It is expected that the labor inspections in 2023 will focus on certain issues, employee groups, and industries as explained above.  Also, in order to improve the effectiveness of the labor inspections, the MOEL is expected to conduct joint inspections of labor and occupational safety issues, impose more aggressive sanctions for violations of the law, and disclose the inspection results to the public.
 
Given the MOEL’s focus on utilizing labor inspections as a compliance tool, it will be more important than ever to be well prepared for such labor inspection in 2023.  Therefore, we recommend that companies proactively prepare for a labor inspection by ensuring compliance with labor-related laws and regulations and diagnosing and improving the workplace culture.

[Korean Version]