Strengthening the social safety net in Korea

Hyunjeong Hwang, Axel Purwin and Jon Pareliussen

No 1733, OECD Economics Department Working Papers from OECD Publishing

Abstract: Social protection in Korea is designed around traditional forms of employment and excludes a substantial share of workers in non-standard employment. The resulting social protection gaps compound income inequality and undermine financial sustainability as uninsured persons rely on tax-financed benefits. Besides, Korea’s tax and benefit system discourages taking up or returning to low-paid work from social assistance or unemployment benefits. Expanding the reach of employment insurance while redesigning the tax and benefit system could boost work incentives and reduce inequality and poverty. The elderly poverty rate is persistently high, partly because public pensions and social insurance were introduced relatively recently. Better targeting the means-tested Basic Pension could reduce elderly poverty considerably. Lengthening careers is essential to ensure pension sustainability and adequate retirement income for future retirees. Shifting from a severance pay system to a corporate pension would help improve retirement income and lower employers’ incentives to push for early retirements. Reducing inequalities in access to health and long-term care will require expansion of primary care and affordable quality home-based care. This will also help address the overreliance on hospitals and cope with rising demand.

Keywords: health and inequality; retirement policies; safety; Social security and public pensions (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: H55 I13 J08 J28 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022-11-30
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-age, nep-hea, nep-lma and nep-pbe
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