KOREAN DOCTORS’ HIGH INCOME

KOREAN DOCTORS’ HIGH INCOME

[Anchor Lead]
In South Korea, doctors earn up to nearly seven times more than the average worker's wage, the largest income gap in the OECD, according to the "Health at a Glance 2023" report. However, the country faces a shortage of doctors, falling below the OECD average.

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As of 2021, the annual average gross income of doctors was 2.1 to 6.8 times higher than that of general workers. That's according to the OECD's "Health at a Glance 2023" report. Salaried doctors earn 2.1 times more than workers, self-employed doctors 3 times more and salaried specialists 4.4 times higher. On average, self-employed specialists earn 6.8 times more than workers. The OECD explained that the margin is the largest in Korea, although doctors are high-income earners in other countries as well. In Korea, general practitioners saw their salaries grow 2.6 percent over a decade. It was 2.8 percent for specialists. Among the 23 OECD member countries, the annual salary rose 1.8 percent on average both for GPs and specialists. However, the number of doctors is far lower than the OECD average. As of 2021, Korea had 2.6 doctors per 1,000 people, lower than the OECD average of 3.7. In other OECD nations, the concentration of doctors was usually high in large cities. In the capital area, 2.73 doctors served every 1,000 people, which means 1.77 doctors fewer than the average number in major cities of other OECD countries. Female doctors accounted for 25 percent of the total, the second smallest followed by Japan. Doctors aged 55 or older take up 26 percent of the total, which is lower than the OECD average of 33 percent.

FIRMS TEST 4-DAY WORKWEEK

[Anchor Lead]
Adopting a trend seen in Europe, the four-day workweek is now a reality in South Korea, with major corporations integrating it into their collective agreements. We've explored how this shift is taking shape, revealing its diverse implementations and effects.

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Friday is an off-day for Kwon Hye-in who works only four days a week. She has more time to help her daughter get ready for the day and see her off to a childcare center.

[Soundbite]
Kwon Hye-in (Works 4 days a week): When you raise a child, even a half-day off makes a big difference. My husband also has less work on Fridays.

Kwon's company, an educational content producer, has been implementing a four-day workweek system since a year ago. However, her salary remained unaffected. Her working hours were shortened to 32 hours a week, but the company's productivity rose 14%, thanks to artificial intelligence and other advanced technologies.

[Soundbite]
Kim Yeong-ah (Hunet): We strongly believed that the company had to succeed to maintain this system. We agreed to work tightly.

This university hospital is testing out a four-day work week system this year for thirty of its nurses. Both the management and the union agreed to adopt the new system when the quitting rate of early-career nurses with less than a year on the job reached 50%. The nurses who enrolled in the new 4-day program agreed to a 10% pay cut and the hospital hired five more nurses to run the wards around the clock.

[Soundbite]
Kwon Mi-kyung (Chair, Severance Hospital Trade Union): It wasn’t hard to hire five more nurses. The nurses are very satisfied and the resignation rate declined.

The four-day workweek system is spreading among large conglomerates and platform businesses. Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, and Kakao implement the shortened work week system once a month and food delivery app Baemin established a 32-hour workweek program. More businesses are likely to test the new system as POSCO agreed to adopt the four-day workweek system every other week at this year's collective bargaining agreement meeting.

KOREANS SENTENCED TO DEATH

[Anchor Lead]
In Vietnam, two South Koreans have been sentenced to death for drug smuggling, highlighting the country's stringent approach to narcotics offenses. Vietnam is widely recognized for imposing severe punishments in cases involving drug crimes.

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This gray haired man leaving a court in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam is a South Korean man in his 60s surnamed Kim. Kim was sentenced to death along with another Korean surnamed Kang. They were convicted of trafficking some 216 kilograms of drugs. 16 others including Chinese and Vietnamese nationals also received the death sentence. In Vietnam, Kim has been in the business of exporting granite since 2019. However the following year, he got into drug trafficking through a Chinese acquaintance. In July 2020, while attempting to transport drugs hidden in granite blocks to Korea's Incheon Port, his crew were caught by local military and security police. 40 kilograms of drugs including methamphetamine were seized. An investigation found that Kim and others brought in the substances from Cambodia for distribution mainly in Vietnam, but also to Korea. Vietnamese media quoted Kim's testimony in which he said he knew about the tricks of trade from his 20 year career as a police officer. Local media outlets report that Kim is a former officer dismissed from the police force. But the Korean National Police Agency refutes the claim saying he never served as one of them. Kim was also reportedly jailed in Korea six times from 2000 to 2016 over immigration-related violations. Vietnam is known for its stern punishment of drug crimes. Those caught trafficking drugs can face jail time of more than 2 years. Possession or smuggling of over 600 grams of heroin or 2.5 kilograms of methamphetamine can result in the death penalty.

NEWS BRIEF

[Anchor Lead]
President Yoon Suk Yeol hosted a dinner with a U.S. defense delegation on Sunday in Seoul and asked them to maintain a watertight combined readiness posture to decisively counter any provocation from North Korea. The president also said that the North is believed to be directly and indirectly related to the war in Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas conflict. In response, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said that U.S. President Joe Biden is committed to further strengthening the robust South Korea-U.S. alliance more than ever.
Financial Minister Choo Kyung-ho says inflation is likely to be around 3.6 percent in November. In an interview with KBS on Sunday, Choo expected that consumer prices will stabilize gradually over time. He said that there are no plans to raise public utility charges for the time being. The minister said that even if fee increases are deemed inevitable, the government is asking public utility companies to reduce costs and increase managerial efficiency first.

TIRES LITTER THE SEA

[Anchor Lead]
An environmental challenge emerges off Busan's coast, where discarded tires used to cushion small vessels are sinking into the sea. This year, approximately 1,000 tons of these tires are expected to be retrieved from Busan Port, highlighting a significant ecological concern.

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A loading dock in Bongnae-dong, Busan. Old tires are wrapped around the barges and boats like armor. The tires are fastened to prevent the moored vessels from crashing into each other and causing damage. The problem is that such old tires fall into the sea to generate micro-plastic and even cause maritime accidents. Crew members say it's difficult for small shipowners to hire divers to collect the tires that fell into the sea because of outside impact like a typhoon or simply because they got too worn-down.

[Soundbite]
(Crew member (VOICE MODIFIED)): These boats use old tires. Let’s say one tire per vessel falls into the sea each year. If there are 10,000 boats, that comes to 10,000 tires per year.

The Korea Marine Environment Management Corporation retrieved used tires in eight areas in Busan this year. The salvage work also took place at Pier 5 of Busan Port, Molwundae Cliff, and the mooring wharf where large numbers of waste tires were spotted. The city of Busan spent 2.66 billion won this year to salvage 1,041 tons of used tires, which accounts for 25% of all the tires collected nationwide.

[Soundbite]
Kim Jong-deok (Marine Environment Management Corporation): Pro divers will be assigned to Busan Port Pier 5 with heavy ship traffic. A waste retrieval ship with salvage equipment will collect tires at Molwundae Cliff and the mooring wharf.

But the war against old tires is likely to continue as there are no economical and eco-friendly shock absorbers that can replace waste tires.

SAEMANGEUM TOURISM

[Anchor Lead]
Amidst Saemangeum's vast landscape, the tourism and leisure sectors, once overlooked due to a lack of investor interest, are now gaining attention. With significant developmental progress and enhanced road infrastructure, Jeollabuk-do Province is actively seeking to attract investments in these areas.

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This is Saemangeum, which spans 409 square kilometers and includes a freshwater lake. An industrial complex located near Gunsan is bustling with activity as factories settle in one after another. However, development is slow on a tourism and leisure site on the opposite side located near Buan-gun County. This may change as Jeollabuk-do Province and the Jeonbuk Development Corporation have set out to recruit firms that can first develop a one million square meter plot inside the tourism and leisure site. Authorities are persuading businesses to take part in the project, citing the surrounding road infrastructure and natural landscape, such as the Gogunsan Archipelago. Some 20 firms specializing in theme parks, resorts and golf courses are showing interest. The central government also plans to build a tourist and leisure facility dubbed the "Challenge Theme Park" by the end of 2026 with 140 billion won of private sector investment. However, drawing such huge investment will be a tough call given current economic uncertainties at home and abroad. A steep cut in the social overhead capital budget for Saemangeum following the World Scout Jamboree debacle may also negatively affect the province's efforts to attract businesses to the area.

[Soundbite]
Choi Jae-yong (Director, Saemangeum maritime and fisheries affairs): The economy is difficult with high interest rates. But we can’t be discouraged. We should focus efforts on promotion and seeking investment.

The goal for Saemangeum is completing development of its five major zones by the year 2050. The tourism and leisure site is zone No. 3 and its total size exceeds 37 square kilometers if areas with similar purposes designated in other zones are also included. This accounts for 12.9% of total Saemangeum land. It remains to be seen whether the investment flowing into the industrial complex can also replicate in the tourism and leisure sector.

LOCAL DONATIONS IN TROUBLE

[Anchor Lead]
As local governments begin to implement the Hometown Love Donation program this year, many face a daunting challenge: the amount of donations has not met expectations, leaving numerous authorities without a concrete plan for this year's funding projects.

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In April, Jeungpyeong-gun County became the first community in Chungcheongbuk-do Province to accumulate more than 100 million won in Hometown Love Donation. The donated money was earmarked for a long-awaited road expansion project, but there was a problem. The local government hasn't even started the project because the donation, which amounts to only 130 million won, is far short of funding the 30-billion-won construction.

[Soundbite]
Seo Sang-beom (Jeungpyeong-gun Donation Program official): We couldn’t draw much donation because of insufficient resident awareness and publicity.

Roughly 26.5 billion won in Hometown Love Donation flooded into local governments from January when the program started to August. That comes to only 30% of the targeted 80 billion won. Given the shortfall, local governments cannot dare start planning projects. The project guidelines for the Hometown Love Donation program merely describe how the program is run. Fewer than ten local governments have finalized projects. For instance, the Chungcheongbuk-do provincial government promised to pay for orthodontic braces for 50 residents per year.

[Soundbite]
(○○ County Donation Program official): A donation of KRW 60 mn to KRW 100 mn isn’t enough to carry out a project.

Experts point out that local governments must think about ways to use the money well. They say that special projects must be discovered and designated donations be allowed to boost donors' interest.

[Soundbite]
Yoon Young-han (Chungbuk Research Institute): Expenditure must be made clear for a donor to feel the satisfaction that the money is used for a good cause.

The Hometown Love Donation program was set up as a solution for local communities' decline. The government plans to revise the law to allow donations through private donation platforms and implement other measures to promote donations.