Average wait for child-care service hits 40 days, rising every year

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The supply shortage for South Korea's child-care service program — designed to help address the country's low birth rate — is worsening, with wait times growing longer each year, according to a new government report.

A report recently published by the National Assembly Budget Office, titled "Improvement Plans for the Child-Care Support Project to Overcome Low Birth Rates," found that the average wait for the child-care service reached 39.4 days last year, more than double the 19 days recorded in 2021.

Applications have surged while supply has failed to keep pace, pushing the service connection rate into a downward trend.

The number of applicant households reached 183,794 last year, more than double the 78,118 recorded in 2021.

Yet the number of households actually matched to a caregiver has not kept up. In 2021, 71,789 households were matched, a connection rate of 91.9%, while last year 159,804 households were matched, with the rate falling to 86.9%.

The child-care support project operates under the Child-Care Support Act, sending trained caregivers directly to the homes of families with children aged 12 or younger who lack adequate care arrangements.

The program aims to ease the child-rearing burden on dual-income couples and others, contributing to efforts to reverse the low birth rate. This year's budget stands at 597.8 billion won ($397 million), with plans to serve 126,000 households — even though the number of households connected last year alone approached 160,000.

Analysts say more accurate demand forecasting and broader service expansion are needed as use of hourly and short-term care options grows sharply.

The share of trained caregivers who go on to become active workers has been declining. The care allowance paid to caregivers this year — 11,120 won per hour, just 107.8 percent of the minimum wage — has also been flagged as a problem.

The National Assembly Budget Office stressed that "the number of active caregivers is not sufficient to meet growing demand for child-care services, and a stable workforce management foundation must be established." It added that the government should "improve working conditions so that those who complete training go on to work actively and stay in the job long-term, and reflect the findings of actual conditions surveys in program operations and system improvements to build a stable workforce management foundation."

ygmoon@heraldcorp.com