Chapter 234
Chapter 234
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Employment Policy
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Whether Korean conglomerates monopolized everything or Western-style reforms were pushed through, these issues didn't really hit home for ordinary people.
People first tasted the sweet fruit of double-digit economic growth year after year.
“Sweet, so sweet. Wages skyrocket the moment you open your eyes!”
No matter the job or position, everyone could feel the wage hikes in their bones.
“We were really born in a great era.”
With the whole country booming, jobs were overflowing everywhere.
As a result, companies even started giving interview fees to applicants who submitted resumes and showed up.
“Applicant, we’d love for you to work with us.”
“I’ll think about it.”
It wasn’t pocket change either, so some people made a living just going to interviews.
Given the situation, companies petitioned the government to loosen labor market regulations.
“We’re really short on manpower. Please ease the hiring restrictions.”
At the companies’ pleas, the Korean government relaxed regulations to some extent.
“Hire EA folks.”
It was limited to those in the shared economic bloc, EA.
“While we’re at it, can’t we get cheap labor from India or the Republic of China? EA labor costs a bit more.”
Companies wanted even cheaper workers if possible, but the Korean government was firm.
“If you want that kind of cheap labor so bad, build your factories in the Republic of China.”
That wasn’t what the companies wanted.
“The Republic of China? That place is a demon’s den.”
The Republic of China had unstable power supply and poor public safety.
Why risk building a factory there and getting into trouble?
The limit for Korean companies setting up factories was within the same EA zone: Nanjing and Japan.
Thanks to these invisible restrictions, Korea’s job supply didn’t stray far from demand.
Unemployment was kept at around 3.3%.
Factoring in job hunting and job-switching, it was practically full employment.
Park Daecul was one of those benefiting from this golden age.
Right after graduating vocational high school, Park Daecul landed a job at a major corporation.
It had a notorious military-style culture among job seekers, but it was still a big company—no ignoring that.
“Good benefits and solid days off? That’s all that matters.”
That’s what Park Daecul thought, but once he sampled the work during probation, his mind changed.
“Consciousness reform?”
Things were happening that he’d never heard from seniors who’d gotten jobs before.
Even a quick bathroom break or smoke required sneaking around.
“Mr. Park Daecul. Focus solely on work during work hours.”
“Yes, sir.”
Park Daecul was inwardly shocked seeing people working in silence, zero chit-chat.
This was different from the company culture he’d imagined before applying.
Was it because of the military-style culture?
He asked friends at other companies, but they all said similar things.
“After-hours is the same. Everyone’s too busy with their own work to look up.”
Park Daecul felt a slight relief.
If it was just him suffering, how could he endure the injustice?
Since everyone was in the same boat, he’d grit his teeth and bear it.
Once probation ended, an insane workload crushed him.
“You mean all this in one day?”
“No overtime, absolutely. Overtime means allowances, and the bosses hate that.”
Only then did Park Daecul understand why people were so quiet.
They were too busy processing work to talk.
Park Daecul hit his limit after just a week.
“No human can sustain this intensity.”
He worked eight hours, but it felt like twelve.
Park Daecul decided office work wasn’t for him.
So he jumped into production work, which didn’t suit his aptitude.
Fortunately, Daehan was a society where switching jobs was easy.
With jobs everywhere, they didn’t scrutinize applicants’ qualifications too much.
But production work was no cakewalk either.
Less brainpower than office jobs, but the body took a beating.
‘Still better than the alternative.’
Park Daecul decided to stick it out in production.
As Park Daecul’s case showed, office jobs weren’t as popular in Korea as in the original timeline.
Comfy desk work?
That was ancient history.
Some who couldn’t adapt to office life, like Park Daecul, turned to production or day labor.
In fact, day labor paid the most.
“Non-regular jobs without stable employment must pay higher.”
That was the Korean government’s policy.
As a result, day labor was more popular than expected, even eyed by foreigners.
“Minimum wage for non-EA foreigners must always be higher than for Koreans.”
The Korean government blocked labor market entry by forcing higher wages for foreigners than locals.
“Isn’t this discrimination against foreigners?”
“Discrimination? We’re showing foreigners respect.”
Hard to argue discrimination when they were paying more.
But everyone—Korean government and foreigners alike—knew it was discrimination.
“Set foreigner wages to 1.5 times the minimum, ideally.”
To ensure stable employment for workers, the government wouldn’t hand jobs to foreigners.
Foreign commentary on Korea’s labor policies wasn’t lacking.
“Give foreigners the right to work freely in Korea’s labor market.”
“They can. If they’ve got the skills, they take home 1.5 times more.”
Korea didn’t budge on labor restrictions under any pressure.
Outside EA, Korea’s labor market was essentially sealed shut.
India and Thailand even requested consideration.
“Fine, we’ll take some as industrial trainees—send 30,000.”
“What can we do with just tens of thousands?”
“Take it or leave it.”
Korea showed zero compromise here.
“With jobs overflowing, do they really need to go this far?”
But the government thought differently.
“Good times don’t last forever. Gotta prepare for when the economy tanks.”
This stance influenced EA nations too.
“Blocking foreigner hires is the way, right?”
“Of course—why let our money flow out? Block it.”
Nanjing and Japan immediately mimicked Korea’s employment policy.
The Republic of China was the one wailing.
“Isn’t this too much among fellow East Asian nations?”
“Fellow East Asians? When did you join EA?”
“We share the same economic zone with Korean currency, don’t we?”
Of course, such logic fell on deaf ears.
EA thus formed the world’s most closed labor market.
Yet EA thrived.
Possible because EA’s total population rivaled Europe’s.
Koreans expressed satisfaction with the government’s policy.
“Better to look after our own than spout hypocrisy.”
The Lee Seong-jun regime indeed ran with that slogan.
“In Daehan, Koreans come first.”
The so-called Korea-first principle.
Blatant nationalism, but Lee Seong-jun’s supporters cheered it wildly.
The opposition couldn’t casually oppose such labor policies.
“Oppose and you’re a traitor; support and you ride the wave.”
Smarter to keep quiet.
In reality, Korea’s employment policy was a key pillar propping up Lee Seong-jun’s high approval ratings.
“Support His Excellency and get money? Support him and you get jobs—and money!”
Even Korean-style democracies considered copying the policy.
But foreign firms dominated jobs in those nations.
Interfere like that?
“Yeah, they’d just pull their investments.”
Risked driving out foreign companies.
So mimicking Korea was nearly impossible.
Even job-rich Singapore pondered it but soon gave up.
“You need the scale to withstand external pressure for that.”
Only a superpower like Korea could pull it off.
Through this policy, Korea gave the poor a chance to put food on the table.
Long-term poverty needed state safety nets, but Lee Seong-jun’s regime didn’t go that far.
“Growth before welfare.”
The regime’s employment policy was fundamentally for growth, not welfare.
But outsiders saw it as welfare.
“Protecting their underclass like that. Guess Lee Seong-jun’s regime is warm to its own people after all.”
Calls to mimic Korea’s labor policies emerged in America and Europe.
“Country-first-ism.”
They were already suffering job shortages from Korean corporate incursions.
“Let’s prioritize our own citizens like Korea!”
Politicians couldn’t ignore such voices easily.
Soon, Germany—fresh off imperial reconstruction talk—reacted.
“To ‘normalize’ our labor market, we’ll raise foreigner wages.”
As the Manstein regime dove into Korean-style reforms, the trend spread across the West.
“They called us closed off, but now they’re copying us.”
Closed labor markets would obviously slow Western innovation.
“We’ve got the population scale; what makes you think you can follow suit?”
Pyongyang couldn’t help but laugh at competitors’ self-inflicted wounds.