The Myth of Confucian Capitalism in South Korea: Overworked Elderly and Underworked Youth

Abstract

However, the reality is quite different when it comes to the demographic composition of labour markets in Korea. Unlike the Confucian norm in households, too many old people work in the labour markets while too many young people do not. In 2005, approximately 30 percent of the Korean elderly aged 65 years or older participated in labour markets, while only 70 percent of Koreans in the 25-to-29-year-old age range were economically active. The former rate is almost 20 percent higher than the average in countries above the "upper-middle-income" level, 4 while the latter is 10 percent lower than the average in these countries. This type of demographic imbalance in labour markets, together with poor working conditions for both old and young workers, demonstrates that the underlying assumptions about Confucian capitalism do not hold in Korea. Most of all, this indicates that the Confucian ties between young and old Koreans as caregivers and caretakers are not realized through Korean labour markets. Moreover, Korea's economic development has not been supported by this Confucian virtue. Facing low pay and insecure jobs, many young Koreans avoid entering the labour force and are thus unprepared to play the bread-winning role. Receiving little support from their children, older Koreans have been forced to stay in the job market. In most cases, the jobs they take pay poorly and offer no employment security. This study analyzes why Korea faces the problem of overworked elderly and underworked youth. This problem has conventionally been attributed to external factors unrelated to Korea's way of industrialization. For example, labour economists see the growing proportion of the elderly in the workforce as a result of increased longevity and attribute the low labour market participation of the young to the changing nature of education. Meanwhile, cultural theorists suggest that, as the infl uence of Confucian values such as family harmony and fi lial sacrifi ce diminish in Korean society, an increasing number of adult children are unprepared to work and their elderly parents fi nd it necessary to participate in labour markets. However, this study emphasizes the responsibilities of Korea's unique approach to industrialization. It proposes that the main characteristics of Korea's pattern of development have distorted the supply and demand structure of labour markets and caused the demographic imbalance between overworked elderly and underworked youth. The fi rst responsibility lies in crony capitalism. The Korean economy has been dominated by the chaebol (business conglomerates) or large enterprises (LEs), which depend on close relationships with the state. However, LEs' job creation has been underperforming and __________________ Hye-Sook Wang, "Confucian Ethics and the Spirit of Capitalism in Korea: Focused on Filial Piety,"

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