DISCUSSIONS ON 2023 MINIMUM WAGE

[Anchor Lead]

Discussions of the minimum wage for next year are underway. Labor and management have unveiled their demands. Management wants the basic wage to remain unchanged. Labor is demanding an 18-percent increase. Reaching a consensus is not going to be easy.

[Pkg]

The representatives of management on the basic wage committee want the minimum wage to remain at its current level of 9,160 won per hour next year. They say the basic wage is already too burdensome for small businesses.

[Soundbite] Ryu Ki-jung(Korea Enterprises Federation) : "Management believes the most important aspect in determining the minimum wage is the ability to pay it. We believe raising the basic wage next year would be difficult."

Labor wants the basic wage to be raised by 18 percent, to 10,890 won per hour. They claim the minimum wage should be estimated as the living cost of a household, not a single worker living alone, as has been done so far.

[Soundbite] Park Hee-eun(Korean Confederation of Trade Unions) : "We want the public interest committee members to know that income earned by low-paid workers receiving the minimum wage is all they have. It's the minimum source of income for their families as well."

Regarding inflation, labor says wages must be raised in line with rising consumer prices. Management says wages should remain unchanged because the rising prices are pushing up production costs. The difference in opinions is about 1,700 won. It remains to be seen if the two sides can bridge that difference. On June 16 they agreed not to differentiate basic wages by sector, one of the thorniest issues in negotiations. However, public interest committee members point out the government should review basic data on the possibility of minimum wage differentiation by sector by next year in line with management's demands.