Korea's Minimum Wage Crossed 10,000 Won, and Your High Schoolers Already Have a Job to Compare It To

Discussion: Korea's Minimum Wage

Key facts

• 2025 minimum wage: 10,030 won/hour (up from 9,860 won in 2024)
• First time Korea's minimum wage passed 10,000 won
• Set every August by the Minimum Wage Commission for the following year

Vocabulary

• minimum wage (최저임금 — choejeo-imgeum)
• part-time job (아르바이트 — areubaiteu)
• inflation (인플레이션 — inpeulleisyeon)
• small business owner (소상공인 — sosanggongin)
• automation (자동화 — jadonghwa)

Discussion questions

1. Should the minimum wage go up faster than 1.7% a year? Why or why not?
2. If you owned a small café, how would a higher minimum wage change your decisions?
3. Would you rather earn more per hour, or work more hours at the same rate?
4. Do you think machines (kiosks, self-checkout) will replace part-time jobs in the next 10 years?
5. Is 10,030 won an hour enough for a high school student working part-time in Korea?

Debate roles

• Group A: Workers who want a bigger raise
• Group B: Small business owners worried about costs
• Group C: Economists who think the current rate is balanced