00:00your retirement money could be locked up before you ever see it. Korea's government wants every
00:04workplace to set aside retirement pay outside the company by 2030. Here's what that means for you.
00:10Retirement pay in Korea is often treated as company debt. Many small firms use that cash
00:15to pay salaries and buy raw materials. Under the new rules, that money has to go to an outside
00:20financial institution every year. Last year, retirement pay made up 41.1% of all unpaid
00:26wages. That's 822.9 billion won. Here's what the numbers show. Korea's income mobility fell to a
00:33record low in 2024. Upward movement dropped to 16.9%, the lowest since 2017. Among people in their
00:4120s and 30s, the rate fell from 23% to 22.4%. 70% of employees earning above a certain
00:48level
00:49kept their income bracket for another year. Fewer people saw their work income rise. 61.4% saw an
00:55increase, down from 64% the year before. Korea's retirement pension market holds 501.4 trillion won,
01:03but last year it returned just 6.47%. Public pensions returned nearly three times that. 75.4%
01:10of those funds sit in guaranteed return products. Pension funds are moving toward a pooled model,
01:15where professional managers invest on behalf of many employers. The government also plans to let
01:20workers in IRP accounts hold more risky assets, though the exact limit is still undecided. Companies
01:25are also struggling to find skilled workers. Industry leaders want AI used to record experienced
01:32technicians' know-how. And they want the 52-hour weekly work limit rethought for research roles.
01:37So what does this mean for early career professionals? Earlier, we said your retirement
01:40money could be locked up before you see it. Here's what that actually means for you.
01:44The money you contribute may move outside your employer, with better protection, but fewer
01:49dollars for the company to use day-to-day. That could affect how your employer treats raises,
01:54bonuses, and benefits in the next few years. That's today's AI Prism, Early Careers.
01:59This episode was produced with AI Assistants based on Seoul Economic Daily Reporting.
02:05AI Prism is a Juan IFRA award-winning series. We'll be back tomorrow.
