Why the Social Investment Approach is Not Enough – The Female Labour Market and Family Policy in the Republic of Korea

Abstract

AbstractDespite the gradual increase in the female labour market activity rate in most of the countries of the Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development, the rate has been stagnant in the Republic of Korea. The low female employment rate in Korea also reflects the withdrawal of a majority of women at the time of marriage or childbirth, resulting in an M‐shaped pattern. The discourse on social investment attracted much attention from the Kim Dae‐Jung Government (1998–2003) and was more facilitated from the mid‐2000s towards the later period of the Roh Moo‐Hyun Government (2003–08). Against this background and along with a frantic focus on the low fertility rate from the mid‐2000s, the government has expanded expenditure on family policy. In this article, we analyze social investment policies related to female employment and discuss their effect on promoting Korean women to work. We first closely examine the Korean female labour market in three aspects: precarious employment pattern; career breaks; and under‐employment. Based on our policy analysis, we suggest that there is a mismatch in implemented policy and policy preference. Lastly, this article questions how effective social investment policies can be without a consideration of changes in job quality in the Korean female labour market.