Public Care Expansion and Gender Equality Policies Reshape South Korea’s Labor Market, Working Mothers’ Employment Rate Hits Record 64.3%

Employment rate of married women aged 15–54 reaches an all-time high of 64.3%
Number of career-interrupted women falls to 1.1 million, down 110,000 from a year earlier
Public childcare policies and shifting social norms prove decisive

The share of “working mothers” raising minor children has reached the highest level since relevant statistics were first compiled. In particular, the employment rate of working mothers with children aged 13–17 has surpassed 70% for the first time, meaning seven out of ten mothers in this group are active in the labor market. The trend reflects the combined impact of expanded public childcare infrastructure, the spread of flexible work arrangements across corporate workplaces, and a growing social consensus that childcare is no longer solely a woman’s responsibility.

“Working Even With Children”

According to the National Data Authority’s “First-Half 2025 Regional Employment Survey: Employment Status of Married Women,” released on the 21st, the employment rate of married women aged 15–54 living with children under 18 stood at 64.3%. This marks the highest level since the statistics were first compiled in 2016. As recently as 2020, the figure was just 55.5%, indicating a rise of nearly 10 percentage points in five years. Over the same period, the employment rate of the overall working-age population rose by 4.3 percentage points, underscoring the notably steeper increase among married women.

By age group, the proportion of working mothers was highest among those aged 45–49 at 67.9%, followed by 50–54 at 66.5%, 35–39 at 64.7%, 40–44 at 64.5%, and 30–34 at 57.8%. By number of children, employment rates were 64.6% for mothers with one child, 64.6% for those with two children, and 60.6% for those with three or more, indicating broad labor market participation regardless of family size.

Among married women with children aged 13–17, the employment rate reached 70.4% in the first half of this year, up 1.2 percentage points from a year earlier and the first time the figure has exceeded 70%. Employment rates stood at 66.1% for those with children aged 7–12 and 57.7% for those with children aged six or younger. Across all child age groups, employment among married women rose by 1.2–2.1 percentage points year on year. As employment increased, the share of career-interrupted married women among those aged 15–64 fell to a record low of 14.9%.

Industries employing the largest numbers of married women included health and social welfare services, with 475,000 workers accounting for 17.8%, followed by education services at 417,000 workers or 15.6%, and wholesale and retail trade at 334,000 workers or 12.5%. Many women entered roles with relatively low barriers to entry, such as caregiving and elder care. The number of career-interrupted married women working as insurance sales agents or day laborers at logistics centers has also increased sharply.

Overcoming the “Valley of Doom” for First- and Second-Grade Students Through the Neulbom School Program

The most significant driver of rising employment among married women has been the expansion of childcare policies, including the Neulbom School program and extended operating hours at infant and early childhood childcare facilities. Beginning in March last year, the government rolled out the Neulbom School program nationwide to address childcare gaps faced by dual-income households with first-grade elementary school children. The program provides care at schools from 7 a.m. before classes begin until 8 p.m. after classes end. According to the Ministry of Education, 2,741 out of 6,175 elementary schools nationwide, or 44.3%, had adopted the program as of last year.

The program was introduced to address the sharp time and learning gaps faced by first- and second-grade students. Children who previously stayed in full-day kindergarten programs until around 4 or 5 p.m. suddenly return home as early as 1 or 2 p.m. upon entering elementary school, creating an additional three to four hours of unsupervised time. To fill this gap, families often rely heavily on private academies near schools and homes.

For dual-income households, the early elementary years are widely referred to as the “valley of doom,” a period that is difficult to manage without extensive external support. According to the KB Financial Management Institute’s “Korea Working Mom Report,” 50.5% of working mothers with elementary school children and 39.8% of those with middle or high school children cited their child’s entry into elementary school as the point at which they considered quitting or changing jobs.

Statistics reinforce this perception. As of 2022, elementary schools recorded the highest rate of private education participation among all school levels, at 85.2%, compared with 76.2% for middle schools and 66% for high schools. By grade, second graders ranked highest at 88%, followed by third graders at 87.6%, fourth graders at 86.3%, and first graders at 85.7%.

School vacations represent another recurring “valley of doom” for parents of first- and second-grade students, occurring two or three times a year. With schools closed, children require supervision at home and three meals a day. For working parents commuting daily, this poses a substantial challenge. While some families can rely on grandparents or relatives, others must turn to babysitters. As a result, highly educated women often contemplate resignation or job changes around school vacation periods, a timing that has historically coincided with career interruptions.

Another childcare support policy gaining positive reviews is the in-home childcare service, which provides care for children aged 12 or younger in households facing childcare gaps. The service is designed to cover time slots not fully addressed by daycare centers, kindergartens, or after-school programs. With weekday fees set at about $8.6 per hour, it is widely regarded as a cost-effective, tailored response to the challenges of an era marked by low birth rates.

Community childcare centers have also demonstrated tangible results. These centers repurpose unused spaces in apartment complexes, family centers, or community offices to create shared childcare environments where parents jointly care for children while building local networks. Similar initiatives have shown measurable success in Japan. In the rural town of Nagi in Okayama Prefecture, the operation of a free childcare facility known as the “Nagi Child Home” helped lift the local fertility rate from 1.41 in 2005 to 2.95 in 2019.

Flexible Work Arrangements Boost Both Female Employment and Fertility

Alongside government childcare policies, the expansion of flexible work arrangements by companies has played a critical role in supporting higher employment among married women. Across industries, firms are increasingly adopting systems that allow working parents to better coordinate professional responsibilities with childcare. The core shift has been the relaxation of rigid constraints on working hours and locations, replacing fixed schedules and mandatory office attendance with arrangements negotiated between employers and employees.

The most widely used flexible system in South Korea is staggered working hours, which allow employees to adjust start and end times while maintaining standard daily working hours, typically eight hours. Remote work is another key model, focusing on flexibility of location rather than time. In recent years, hybrid work combining office attendance with remote work has become more prevalent than full-time remote arrangements, allowing employees to work from home for part of the week or part of the day.

Most companies combine hybrid work with flexible scheduling. Fintech firm Finda, for example, recognizes office attendance as long as employees observe core hours from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and allows remote work twice a week. Employees plan and share weekly schedules in advance and can use two-hour “quarter-day” leave options. LG Display introduced a “parental flexible work system” in 2021, allowing employees with children in sixth grade or below to mix office and remote work or leave and return later in the day, provided they complete eight hours of work. POSCO, where more than 90% of employees are male, became the first major domestic company to introduce a parental remote work system in 2020, allowing both working mothers and fathers to apply for remote work based on caregiving needs, reflecting a clear shift in social attitudes toward shared parenting responsibilities.

Some companies have gone further by eliminating location constraints entirely. Conny by Erin, a childcare products manufacturer, has operated a fully remote work system since its founding in 2017. Employees observe core hours based on Korean time but otherwise manage their schedules autonomously. For those with younger elementary school children, the company allows additional flexibility even during core hours to accommodate daytime childcare. Additional benefits include child-friendly office environments, support for childcare service apps for parents of lower-grade elementary students, and a range of family-oriented welfare programs.