Samsung jumps on 4-day workweek bandwagon as it gives staff one Friday off each month

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Starting next week, non-factory, full-time staff at the company can take the day off in the period they get paychecks — usually the week of the 21st, a company spokesperson said by phone Wednesday. 

Local media reported the policy earlier this week. 

Samsung’s move follows local rival SK Hynix Inc. adopting a similar flexible workweek last year, allowing staff to take one Friday off a month if they work more than 40 hours a week. Other South Korean technology firms, including popular social platform Kakao Corp., have also introduced more flexible arrangements following the pandemic. 

The move from Samsung, which has about 120,000 employees, shows just how much the pandemic has changed the way people work—even in a country with a more conservative work culture. South Koreans are among the world’s most overworked, logging about 200 hours more in 2021 than the average among OECD members.

The arrangements are aimed at retaining talent, particularly among younger workers who value work-life balance. Millennials and Generation Z make up about 40% of Samsung’s workforce, according to the Korea Economic Daily. 

Here are some of the flexible arrangements adopted by South Korea’s firms this year:

• SK Hynix: Employees can take Friday off once a month if they work more than 40 hours a week on average.
• Kakao Corp: Gives the last Friday of each month off. Their subsidiary Kakao Games gives two Fridays off each month.
• CJ ENM Co : One of South Korea’s largest content companies gives workers two Fridays off a month, in the 2nd and 4th weeks of each month.