Declaring 'Crisis,' South Korean Firms Tell Managers to Work 6 Days a Week
South Korean conglomerates are ordering managers to work six days a week in response to what they label an economic “crisis,” prompting skepticism that longer hours from executives will improve productivity or address structural headwinds like China’s slowdown. Commenters link the move to the country’s extreme work culture and already record-low fertility rate, arguing that overwork, weak social safety nets, and gender inequities in caregiving are driving people away from both child‑rearing and the labor market. Many see the policy as symbolic “look busy” management that may worsen burnout and demographic decline rather than resolve underlying economic problems.
Scope of the “Crisis” and Motives
- Many commenters find the “crisis/emergency” framing vague or performative; articles cited say executives are mostly holding meetings or “studying current events.”
- Some attribute it to a mild global slowdown and China’s slowdown specifically hurting export-dependent Korea.
- Others see it as a symbolic “look busy” move to reassure shareholders and signal toughness, not a concrete productivity plan.
Productivity vs. Busywork
- Widespread skepticism that making managers work a 6th day will raise profits or reduce costs.
- Several point out that more management hours often yield more bureaucracy, meetings, and oversight, not better outcomes.
- Remote-work anecdotes: when managers had more free time, they generated more initiatives, reporting, and tracking rather than real value.
- “Butts in seats” culture and presenteeism are seen as already pervasive; this is viewed as an intensification, not a fix.
Labor Culture and Spillover
- Even if the policy officially targets executives, many expect pressure to cascade down to lower-level managers and ICs, especially in hierarchical cultures.
- Comparisons drawn to Japan’s unpaid overtime culture, where managers’ long hours implicitly force teams to stay.
- Some speculate it may function as soft pressure for people to quit rather than formal layoffs.
Demographics and Fertility Crisis
- Strong concern that longer workweeks worsen South Korea’s already record-low fertility rate and youth disillusionment.
- Posters note young Koreans opting out of the labor market due to lack of “quality jobs,” tying that to low birth rates and delayed or foregone parenthood.
- Debate over whether more leisure and welfare raise or lower fertility; some argue current conditions (overwork, high costs, gender inequality) are the binding constraints.
Gender, Family, and Care Work
- Discussion that men in Korea often want kids more than women, but are perceived as unwilling to share childcare and housework equally.
- Several argue that for women, children mean major physical risk and career cost, while for men they can be closer to a “hobby,” skewing incentives.
Migration and Exit Options
- Some suggest educated Koreans could emigrate for better work–life balance.
- Others counter that “just leave” ignores strong cultural, familial, and social ties that make emigration nontrivial.