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ENFORCEMENT DECREE OF THE ACT ON EQUAL EMPLOYMENTAND SUPPORT FOR WORK-FAMILY RECONCILIATION

This translation of Korea's labor laws is intended mainly as

a convenience to the non-Korean-reading public. If any questions arise related to the accuracy of the information contained in the translation, please refer to the official Korean version of the laws. Any discrepancies or differences created in the translation are not binding and have no legal effect for compliance or enforcement purposes.

* This Decree reflects only the amendments made until

October 31, 2011

ENFORCEMENT DECREE OF THE ACT ON EQUAL EMPLOYMENT AND SUPPORT FOR WORK-FAMILY RECONCILIATION

Presidential Decree No. 12489, Jul. 7, 1988

Amended by Presidential Decree No. 12850, D e c . 13, 1989

Presidential Decree No. 14642, M a y

Presidential Decree No. 14801, Nov.

1, 1995

7, 1995

Presidential Decree No. 16189, Mar. 17, 1999

Presidential Decree No. 21928, Dec. 30, 2009

Presidential Decree No. 22269, Jul.

12, 2010

CHAPTER Ⅰ

G eneral Provi si ons

Articl e 1 (Purpose)
The purpose of this Decree is to prescribe matters delegated by the Act on Equal Employment and Support for Work-Family Reconciliation and those necessary for the enforcement thereof.
Articl e 2 (S cope of Appli cati on)
(1) Pursuant to the proviso to Article 3 (1) of the Act on
Equal Employment and Support for Work-Family Reconciliation (hereinafter referred to as the “Act”), the Act shall not apply, in whole, to businesses or workplaces (hereinafter referred to as
“business”) consisting of blood relatives residing together and to housekeepers.
(2) Pursuant to the proviso to Article 3 (1) of the Act, the provisions of Articles 8 through 10 and Article 11 (1) shall not apply to businesses with less than five workers.

CHAPTER Ⅱ

G uarantee of Eq ual O pportuni ty and T reatment, etc. i n Empl oyment of M en and Women

Articl e 3 (Education to Prevent S exual Harassment at Work )
(1) An employer shall, pursuant to Article 13 of the Act, conduct education to prevent sexual harassment at work at least once a year.
(2) The prevention education stated in paragraph (1) shall include each of the following subparagraphs:
1. Laws and regulations regarding sexual harassment at work;
2. Handling procedures and standards for measures upon occurrence of sexual harassment at work of the workplace concerned;
3. Grievance counseling and remedial procedures for victims of sexual harassment at work of the workplace concerned;
4. Other matters necessary for the prevention of sexual harassment at work.
(3) The prevention education under paragraph (1) may, in consideration of business size, character, etc., be provided through employee training, morning sessions, meetings, cyber education, etc. using information communication network, such as the Internet, etc.: Provided that in cases where it is difficult to confirm whether education contents are properly delivered to workers as educational materials, etc., have been simply distributed or posted or electronic mail thereon has been sent or announced on the bulletin board, it shall not be considered that prevention education has been provided.
(4) Notwithstanding paragraphs (2) and (3), an employer falling under any of the following subparagraphs may conduct education to prevent sexual harassment at work by means of posting and distributing promotional materials in order for workers to know details provided for in Article 2 (1) through (4):
1. Businesses employing less than 10 workers;
2. Businesses where all employers and workers are the same gender, male or female
(5) If an employer has his/her workers complete training courses containing matters falling under each subparagraph of
paragraph (2), among those training course recognized under Article 24 of the Workers’ Vocational Skills Development Act, it shall be deemed that prevention education under paragraph (1) has been conducted for workers who have completed the said training courses.
Articl e 4 (Businesses Ob ligated to Estab lish and S ub mit
I mplementation Plans f or Af f irmative Acti on M easures)
(1) “Public agencies and organizations prescribed by the Presidential Decree” in Article 17-3 (1) 1 refers to public institutions under Article 4 of the Act on the Management of
Public Institutions.
(2) “Business employing more workers than the scale prescribed by the Presidential Decree” in Article 17-3 (1) 2 of
the Act refers to business ordinarily employing 500 workers or more.
(3) In applying paragraph (2), the number of workers shall be calculated by dividing the sum of the average monthly
numbers of workers employed each month in the previous year by the number of months operating in that year.
Articl e 5 (I nstituti ons, etc., Entrusted with Eval uation of
Perf ormance R esults)
(1) "Institutions or organizations prescribed by the Presidential
Decree” in Article 17-4 (6) of the Act mean research institutions established under Article 8 of the Act on the Establishment, Operation and Fostering of
Government-Invested Research Institutions, or research
institutions or juristic persons designated by the Minister of
Employment and Labor among non-profit organizations established under Article 32 of the Civil Act. <Amendedby Presidential Decree
No. 22269, Jul. 12, 2010>
(2) The Minister of Employment and Labor may, if entrusting evaluation duties under Article 17-4 (6) of the Act, support part
of the expenses incurred in performing such duties to the entrusted institution. <Amendedby Presidential DecreeNo. 22269, Jul.
12, 2010>
Articl e 6 Deleted. <Presidential Decree No. 21928, Dec. 30, 2009> Articl e 7 Deleted. <Presidential Decree No. 21928, Dec. 30, 2009> Articl e 8 Deleted. <Presidential Decree No. 21928, Dec. 30, 2009>
Articl e 9 (I nsti tutions Entrusted wi th S urveys and R esearch)
“Persons prescribed by the Presidential Decree” in Article
17-8 (2) of the Act refers to research institutions established under Article 8 of the Act on the Establishment, Operation and Fostering of Government-Invested Research Institutions, or
research institutions or juristic persons designated by the
Minister of Employment and Labor among non-profit organizations established under Article 32 of the Civil Act. <Amended by Presidential DecreeNo. 22269, Jul. 12, 2010>

CHAPTER Ⅲ

S upport f or Work -Fami l y R econci l i ati on

Articl e 10 (Excl usion f rom Chil dcare Leave)
An employer may, pursuant to the proviso to Article 19 (1) of the Act, may not grant childcare leave in any of the
following cases:
1. A worker has offered continuous services in the business concerned for less than a year prior to the scheduled
date of childcare leave(hereinafter referred to as “scheduled start date of leave”);
2. A worker’s spouse is on childcare leave for the same infant (including childcare leave provided under other Acts and subordinate statutes).
Articl e 11 (Appl ication, etc. f or Chi ldcare Leave)
(1) A worker who intends to apply for childcare leave pursuant to Article 19 (1) of the Act shall submit to his/her
employer an application specifying the name and date of birth of the infant to be cared for, the scheduled start date of leave, the date intended to terminate the childcare
leave(hereinafter referred to as “scheduled end date of
leave”), the date of application, and information on the applicant, etc., not later than 30 days prior to the scheduled
start date of leave.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a worker may apply for childcare leave by not later than seven days prior to the
scheduled start date of leave in any of the following cases:
1. Where a child was born before the expected date of
delivery;
2. Where rearing the infant is difficult due to the death, injury, illness or physical or mental disability of or
divorce from the spouse.
(3) The employer shall designate the start date of childcare leave and grant childcare leave within 30 days from the date
of application if the worker has applied for childcare leave after the lapse of deadline under paragraph (1), and within 7
days from the date of application if the worker has applied for childcare leave after the lapse of deadline under paragraph (2).
(4) The employer may request a worker who has applied
for childcare leave to submit documents verifying the birth, etc., of the relevant child.
Articl e 12 (Appl ication, etc. f or Changes to Chil dcare Leave)
(1) A worker who has applied for childcare leave may, if causes falling under any subparagraph of Article 11 (2) have occurred before the scheduled start date of leave, apply to the
employer, clarifying the reason therefor, to change the scheduled start date of leave to an earlier date.
(2) If a worker intends to postpone the scheduled end date of leave, he/she may do so only once. In this case, he/she
shall apply to the employer by not later than 30 days prior to
the original scheduled end date of leave (if he/she intends to postpone the scheduled end date of leave for any cause
provided for in Article 11 (2) 2, 7 days prior to the original scheduled end date of leave).
Articl e 13 (Wi thdrawal , etc., of Appli cati on f or Chi l dcare Leave)
(1) A worker who has applied for childcare leave may withdraw the application by clarifying the reasons therefor by
not later than 7 days prior to the scheduled start date of leave.
(2) If any cause falling under any of the following subparagraphs occurs after the worker applies for childcare
leave but before the scheduled start date of leave, the
application for childcare leave shall be deemed nonexistent. In this case, the worker shall, without delay, notify the employer
of such facts.
1. Where the relevant infant dies;
2. Where the relevant infant is an adopted child for whom adoptive relationship has been annulled or dissolved;
3. If the worker who has applied for childcare leave has become unable to care for the relevant infant due to injury, disease, physical or mental disability, divorce, etc.
Articl e 14 (T ermi nation of Chil dcare Leave Upon D eath, etc. of
I nf ant)
(1) A worker on childcare leave shall, if the relevant infant is decreased or does not live with the worker, notify the employer of such facts within seven days of the date on
which such incident occurred.
(2) The employer shall, if he/she has been notified of the death, etc., of the infant from the worker on childcare leave under
paragraph (1), designate the start date of duties within 30 days from the date of such notification, and inform the worker of the date.
(3) The childcare leave of a worker shall be deemed to have ended on the date specified in any of the following subparagraphs:
1. The date preceding the start date of duties in case where a worker has given notice under paragraph (1) and has been notified of the start date of duties under
paragraph (2);
2. The date when 30 days elapse from the date of notification under paragraph (1) in case where a worker
has give notice under paragraph (1) but have not been notified of the start date of duties under paragraph (2);
3. The date when 37 days elapse from the date of infant's death, etc., in case where a worker has not given notice
under paragraph (1).
(4) If a worker on childcare leave starts new childcare leave or maternity leave pursuant to Article 74 of the Labor
Standards Act, his/her childcare leave shall be considered to
have ended on the date prior to the start date of the said maternity leave or childcare leave.
Articl e 15 (M utatis M utandis Appl ication)
A rtic le s 1 1 th ro u g h 1 4 sh a ll a p p ly m u ta tis mutandis to the methods, procedures, etc., for application for working hour
reduction for childcare period under Article 19-2 of the Act. In
this case, “childcare leave” shall be regarded as “working hour reduction for childcare period”, “scheduled start date of leave”
in Article 11 through 13 as “scheduled start date of working
hour reduction for childcare period”, “scheduled end date of leave” in Article 11 and 12 as “scheduled end date of working
hour reduction for childcare period”, and “start date of duties” in Article 14 (2) and (3) as “date of return to work prior to working hour reduction for childcare period.”
Articl e 16 (Areas f or Pref erenti al Estab li shment of Wel f are
Facil i ti es)
If the State and local governments establish public welfare facilities for female workers pursuant to Article 22 (1) of the Act, they shall preferentially establish such facilities in areas
where female workers are concentrated, such as industrial complexes and rural regions, etc.
Articl e 17 (Entrustment of D uti es, such as S urveys and R esearch, etc. to S upport Work -Famil y R econci li ati on)
(1) According to Article 22-3 (2) of the Act, the Minister of Employment and Labor may entrust duties concerning support for the establishment and operation of workplace childcare facilities under Article 21 and 21-2 of the Act, and concerning establishment of foundation for supporting work-family reconciliation under Article 22-3 (1) to an organization or a juristic person falling under any of the following subparagraphs:
<Amendedby Presidential DecreeNo. 22269, Jul. 12, 2010>
1. Quasi-government institutions under Article 5 (3) 2 of the Framework Act on the Management of Government-Invested Institutions;
2. Research institutions established under Article 8 of the Act on the Establishment, Operation and Forstering of Government-invested Research Institutions;
3. Non-profit juristic persons established under Article 32 of
the Civil Act to conduct business, such as support for work-family reconciliation, etc.

CHAPTER Ⅳ

Preventi on and S ettl ement of D i sputes

Articl e 18 (G rievance R eports, etc.)
(1) A report of grievances under Article 25 of the Act shall be done orally, in writing, or by mail, telephone, fax, or via
the Internet, etc.
(2) An employer shall, if receiving a grievance report under
paragraph (1), directly handle the reported grievances within 10 days from the date of receipt, or entrust the handling to the
labor-management council established under the Act on the Promotion of Worker Participation and Cooperation, unless there is any special reason, and notify the relevant worker of
the results of handling in cases of direct handling, and the
fact of entrustment in cases of entrusting the handling to the labor management council.
(3) An employer shall prepare and keep the ledger of grievances filed and handled and shall preserve the relevant documents for 3 years.
(4) The ledger of filed and handled grievances under
paragraph (3) shall be prepared and kept by means enabling electronic handling unless there is any special reason to
prevent electronic handling, and the relevant documents under the same paragraph may be prepared and preserved in an electronic way.

CHAPTER Ⅴ

S uppl ementary Provi si ons

Articl e 19 (T ypes of D ocuments to b e Preserved)
“Such documents as precribed by the Presidential Decree”
in Article 33 of the Act means those specified in the following subparagraphs:
1. Documents concerning recruitment, hiring, wages, money,
goods, etc., other than wages, education, assignment, promotion, retirement age limit, retirement and dismissal
under Articles 7 through 11 of the Act:
2. Documents to verify that education to prevent sexual harassment at work under Articles 13 and 13-2 of the
Act has been conducted;
3. Documents concerning measures, such as disciplinary measures taken against a sexual harasser at work under
Article 14(1) of the Act, etc.;
4. Deleted <Presidential Decree No. 21547, Jun. 19, 2009>
5. Documents concerning requests and permission for paternity leave under Article 18-2 of the Act;
6. Documents concerning application and permission for
childcare leave under Articles 19 of the Act;
7. Documents concerning application and permission for working hour reduction during childcare period under
Articles 19-2 and 19-3 of the Act, and if it has not been
permitted, documents concerning the notification of the reason and consultation, and documents concerning
working conditions during working hour reduction for childcare period.
Articl e 20 (Heari ng)
The Minister of Employment and Labor shall hold a hearing if he/she intends to revoke the designation of
institutions for sexual harassment prevention education under Article 13-2 (4) of the Act. <AmendedbyPresidential DecreeNo. 22269, Jul. 12, 2010>
Articl e 21 (D el egati on of Authori ty, etc.)
The Minister of Employment and Labor shall, pursuant to
Article 36 of the Act, delegate the authority specified in the following subparagraphs to the heads of local employment and
labor offices: <AmendedbyPresidential DecreeNo. 22269, Jul. 12, 2010>
1. Matters concerning designation and cancellation of institutions entrusted with sexual harassment prevention
education under Article 13-2 of the Act;
2. Matters concerning establishment or operation of facilities to promote employment of women and subsidies for
expenses incurred in performing such business under
Article 17 of the Act;
3. Matters concerning requests for submission of, and acceptance of, implementation plans, requests for submission of supplementary documents to
implementation plans, and acceptance of reports on the current status of female and make workers under Article
17-3 of the Act;
4. Matters concerning acceptance of performance results, notification of results of evaluation of performance results, and compulsion to carry out implementation plans
under Article 17-4 of the Act;
5. Support, guidance, provision of information and counseling necessary for the establishment and operation
of workplace childcare facilities under Articles 21 (3) and
21-2 of the Act;
6. Support for private organizations providing counseling under Article 23 of the Act;
7. Matters concerning commission and decommissioning of honorary equal employment inspectors under Article 24 of
the Act;
8. Matters concerning orders to submit reports and relevant documents, access to workplaces, questioning of relevant
persons, and inspection of relevant documents under
Article 31 of the Act;
9. Matters concerning imposition and collection of fines for negligence under Article 39 of the Act.

CHAPTER Ⅵ

Fi ne f or Negl i gence

Articl e 22 (Criteri a f or I mposi ti on of Fi ne f or Negl igence)
(1) The criteria for the imposition of fines for negligence by type of offense under Article 39 (1) through (3) of the Act are provided in the attached Table.
(2) The Minister of Employment and Labor shall, when determining the amount of a fine for negligence, consider the motive, consequences, etc., of the relevant offense. <Amended by Presidential DecreeNo. 22269, Jul. 12, 2010>

Addenda <Presidential Decree No. 20803, Jun. 5, 2008>

Articl e 1 (Enf orcement D ate)
This Decree shall enter into force on June 22, 2008: Provided that the revised provisions of subparagraphs 4 through 6 of the table shall enter into force on June 22, 2009.
Articl e 2 (S peci al Cases on O b l igati on, etc. to Estab l ish and S ub mit I mpl ementation Pl ans f or Af f i rmative Action M easures)
The revised provisions of Article 4 (1) shall not apply to public institutions ordinarily employing less than 50 workers among public institutions under Article 4 of the Framework Act on the Management of Government-Invested Institutions until April 30, 2013.
Articl e 3 (Transitional Measures on Ob ligation, etc. to Establish and S ub mi t I mpl ementati on Plans f or Af f i rmative Acti on M easures)
As for public institutions (excluding public institutions falling under Article 2 of the Addenda) which are newly subject to Articles 17-3 and 17-4 of the Act according to the revised provisions of Article 4 (1), the obligation to submit under the following subparagraphs shall be applicable from the year concerned:
1. The initial submission of an implementation plan for affirmative action measures according to Article 17-3 (1) (only for public institutions whose employed female workers' ratio by occupation is short of the employment standard provided by the same provision): 2009.
2. The initial submission of a report on the current status of male and female workers by occupation and by
position according to Article 17-3 (2): 2009.
3. The submission of the performance results under Article
17-4 (1) (only for public institutions whose employed female workers' ratio by occupation is short of the
employment standard under Article 17-3 (1) of the Act):
2010.
Articl es 4 (R evisi on of O ther D ecrees)
(1) Parts of the Enforcement Decree of the Labor Standards
Act shall be revised as follows:
“Equal Employment Act” as prescribed in Article 2 (1) 5 shall be changed to “Act on Equal Employment and Support for Work-Family Reconciliation.”
(2) Parts of the Enforcement Decree of the Basic Employment
Policy Act shall be revised as follows:
“Equal Employment Act” as prescribed in Article 7 (5) 4 shall be changed to “Act on Equal Employment and Support
for Work-Family Reconciliation.”
(3) Parts of the Enforcement Decree of the Framework Act on Women's Development shall be revised as follows:
“Equal Employment Act” as prescribed in the proviso to Article 27-2 (1) shall be changed to “Act on Equal Employment and Support for Work-Family Reconciliation.”
Articl e 5 (R el ati on wi th O ther Laws)
If the previous provisions of the Enforcement Decree of the
Act on Equal Employment and Support for Work-Family Reconciliation are quoted in other Acts and subordinate statutes at the time this Act enters into force, and corresponding
provisions thereof are contained in this Decree, the corresponding provisions of this Decree shall be deemed to be quoted in lieu of the previous provisions.

Addendum <Presidential Decree No. 21547, Jun. 19, 2009>

This Decree shall enter into force on the day of its promulgation.

Addenda <Presidential Decree No. 21928, Dec. 30, 2009>

Articl e 1 (Enf orcement D ate)
This Decree shall enter into force on Jan. 1, 2010.
Articl e 2 Omitted.
Articl e 3 (R evisi on of O ther D ecrees)
(1) through (5) omitted.
(6) Parts of the Enforcement Decree of the Act on Equal
Employment and Support for Work-Family Reconciliation shall be revised as follows:
Article 6 through 8 Deleted. (7) through (11) Omitted.
Articl e 4 Omitted.

Addenda <Presidential Decree No. 22269, Jul. 12, 2010>

Articl e 1 (Enf orcement D ate)
This Decree shall enter into force on the date of its promulgation. <Proviso omitted>
Articl e 2 (R evisi on of O ther D ecrees)
(1) through (51) omitted.
(52) Parts of the Enforcement Decree of the Act on Equal
Employment and Support for Work-Family Reconciliation shall be revised as follows:
"Minister of Labor" in Article 5 (1) and (2), Article 9, parts other than each subparagraph of Article 17 (1), Article 20,
parts other than each subparagraph of Article 21, Article 22 (2)
and the attached Table shall be changed to "Minister of
Employment and Labor".
"Head of a regional labor office" in parts other than each
subparagraph of Article 21 shall be changed to "head of a regional employment and labor office".
(53) through (136) Omitted.
[Table] <Amended on Jul. 12, 2010>

Criteri a f or I mposi ti on of Fi ne f or Negl igence b y T ype of O f f ense

(relating to Article 22 (1) of the Decree)

Note : The Minister of Employment and Labor may increase or
reduce the amount of fine for negligence to be imposed by up to half thereof after taking into consideration the motive and consequences, etc., of the offense. In this case,
the total amount of fine for negligence shall not exceed the maximum amount of fine for negligence prescribed in the respective provisions of Article 39 (1) through (3) of the Act.