Work takes centre stage for South Korea’s younger workforce, new report finds

For South Koreans in their 20s to 40s, work is not just a necessity—it is the defining priority of life, far outweighing children, marriage, or even personal fulfilment, according to a newly released government-commissioned report.

The study, published by South Korea’s Presidential Committee for National Cohesion, surveyed 2,690 South Koreans aged 25 to 44 and revealed that 38.1% rank “work” as the most important part of their current life. This was followed by personal life and self-fulfilment (23.1%), romantic relationships and marriage (22%), and children (16.8%).

And while both men and women ranked work as their top priority, their secondary priorities differed. Women selected personal life as the next most important, followed by romantic partnerships and children. Men, meanwhile, prioritised romantic relationships over other aspects.

Even among parents, the prioritisation of work held steady. Among women with young children (aged 0-5), responses were nearly evenly split between work (30.6%) and children (29.1%). For men with children in the same age group, however, work remained the clear priority (35.2%) over children (25.6%).

The study also highlighted the economic pressures shaping workplace attitudes. A dominant 78% of respondents said they work out of financial necessity. More than 60% expressed a desire to remain in their company until retirement or to work hard in pursuit of financial success.

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In contrast, only about half agreed with the idea of minimising work to enjoy more personal time, and fewer than 40% prioritised meaningful work over job stability. These findings highlight the enduring influence of traditional work values in South Korea, where job security and financial stability remain key drivers of career choices, even among younger generations.

The report provided evidence of social evolution, particularly in the areas of gender roles in both the workplace and the home. There was strong agreement on the importance of women’s participation in the labour market: nearly 80% of women and 70% of men surveyed said that women’s employment is necessary. Challenging long-standing stereotypes, fewer than one in five respondents, regardless of the child’s age, believed that mothers working outside the home harm their children.

Moreover, both men and women expressed high levels of support for greater male involvement in domestic responsibilities, with approximately 70% of men and 80% of women agreeing that men should play a more significant role in household chores and childcare.

The report concluded that these shifting social attitudes present a critical window for policy reform. “As both men and women support stronger labour participation for women and greater family involvement from men, now is the time to maximise the effectiveness of such policies,” the report emphasised. It also warned that policies built on the outdated assumption that women will remain full-time homemakers risk missing the mark and called for more comprehensive support for working women, reported The Korea Herald.