People Power Party lawmaker Kim So-hee [Rep. Kim's office]
People Power Party lawmaker Kim So-hee [Rep. Kim's office]

People Power Party lawmaker Kim So-hee announced Wednesday that she has introduced a bill to amend the Minimum Wage Act, allowing differentiated application of the minimum wage to protect small business owners.

Kim held a press conference at the National Assembly that day, saying the current method of setting the minimum wage "ignores the survival rights of small business owners and only results in piling on unbearable burdens every year without reflecting their reality." She added that "differentiated application of the minimum wage for small business owners must be realized."

The bill would require that the minimum wage be set by comprehensively weighing, on top of the existing criterion of "income distribution ratios," an employer's ability to pay and the impact on employment stability.

In addition, the bill adds grounds for differentiating the minimum wage by business "size" and "region" to the existing law, which already allows differentiation by business "type."

The bill also stipulates that any deliberation on whether such differentiated application is warranted must take place before the Minimum Wage Commission begins its review of a proposed minimum wage.

Meanwhile, next year's minimum wage has already been set at 10,700 won ($8) per hour, up 380 won, or 3.7 percent, from this year.


bigroot@heraldcorp.com