"Workers file mass complaint: 'Platform companies violating minimum wage law'", 28 May 2026

Special-employment and platform workers have demanded recognition of their status as workers and the application of the minimum wage to their work.

KCTU (Korean Confederation of Trade Unions) held a press conference on the afternoon of the 27th in front of the Seoul Regional Employment and Labour Office in Jung-gu, Seoul, calling for a guarantee of the minimum wage for more than 8.6 million special-employment and platform workers. Immediately after the press conference, the union submitted a formal complaint to the Seoul Labour Office, alleging that employers of special-employment and platform workers are in violation of the Minimum Wage Act.

Lee Mi-seon, KCTU Deputy Chairperson, argued that "as a result of bearing all costs individually — including travel and waiting time, fuel costs, insurance premiums, and operating expenses — the actual hourly wage of special-employment and platform workers is around 6,000 won per hour," adding that this is "half of this year's minimum wage of 10,320 won."

…The Ministry of Employment and Labour has for the first time included in its deliberation request to this year's Minimum Wage Commission the question of whether to apply a separate minimum wage to piece-rate workers. The proposal calls for discussions on whether a separate minimum wage should be established for piece-rate wage workers for whom it is deemed inappropriate to set the minimum wage on an hourly, daily, weekly, or monthly basis. However, data on the living costs and wage conditions of non-wage workers was not submitted to the specialist sub-committee of the Minimum Wage Commission.

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