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Emeliu
Joined: 31 Mar 2009
Location: Korea, i'm OMW
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 Posted: Thu Jul 09, 2009 11:27 pm Post subject: Korean working drinking culture |
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| Is it true that after work most Koreans go for hours on end with their coworkers and drink? How do married couples cope with this, I know this wouldn't fly in the states (as you'd be dubbed an alcoholic and tossed in the cleansing clinic). |
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redaxe
Joined: 01 Dec 2008
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| Posted: Thu Jul 09, 2009 11:34 pm Post subject: |
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| Nope, never heard of such a thing. Most of the guys at my company leave work a little early so they can go home and spend lots of time with their wives and children. |
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phoneboothface
Joined: 26 Apr 2009
Location: Korea
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| Posted: Thu Jul 09, 2009 11:35 pm Post subject: |
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| redaxe wrote: |
| Nope, never heard of such a thing. Most of the guys at my company leave work a little early so they can go home and spend lots of time with their wives and children. |
This. |
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Emeliu
Joined: 31 Mar 2009
Location: Korea, i'm OMW
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| Posted: Thu Jul 09, 2009 11:41 pm Post subject: |
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| Some Koreans told me that as newer employees, especially ones that aren't married, if they are asked to go drink than they are obligated to go. Is this case true? |
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Fredbob
Joined: 18 Nov 2005
Location: Yongin-Breathing the air-sometimes
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| Posted: Thu Jul 09, 2009 11:42 pm Post subject: |
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Depends on the company. From what I can tell, they wives just take it as part of the deal with being married to a company man. Some industries and companies are still pretty old school, you don't climb up the ladder there, you drink your way up the ladder.
For some companies, I actually insist that the students go out drinking together in the first week, the one day of hangover is definitely compensated for my the "team spirit" it generates  |
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fermentation
Joined: 22 Jun 2009
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| Posted: Thu Jul 09, 2009 11:54 pm Post subject: Re: Korean working drinking culture |
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| Emeliu wrote: |
| Is it true that after work most Koreans go for hours on end with their coworkers and drink? How do married couples cope with this, I know this wouldn't fly in the states (as you'd be dubbed an alcoholic and tossed in the cleansing clinic). |
It obviously depends but here's my personal experience. My father did drink a lot and came home late with alcohol on his breath. I would say it was a few times a week when I was in middle school. He said it was sometimes unavoidable in order to get ahead in the Korean work environment as you have to suck up to your superiors and your co-workers will think you're an outcast if you don't join.
In the company I work at, I deliberately avoided these outings because I knew what they're like and I dislike drinking, and I have no desire to "move up" in this company. I got comments from people saying that I'm a loner or if I don't like people, exactly what I predicted they'll say. Sometimes my male coworkers come to work with hangovers. I know this because they talk about how much their head hurts and they talk about how much soju they slammed the night before. This seems to go on a few times week. Some of them are married, and some of them comment how their wife will give them crap for coming home late. This is just my limited experience but I've heard of many similar stories.
One incident that particularly bothered me was when I had to go a company dinner because of some big invest guy showed interest in our company. I was told there was no way I was not going, so I went. After all drinking and eating, the youngest married guy started going on about going to a room salon and asked my boss(who's a woman) for the corporate credit card so he can pay for the girls. He tried to get me to go as well. I have nothing against prostitution, but a married guy openly talking about how he's gonna go bang hookers in front of his female coworkers was kind of a shock to me. |
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roadwork
Joined: 24 Nov 2008
Location: Goin' up the country
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| Posted: Thu Jul 09, 2009 11:57 pm Post subject: Re: Korean working drinking culture |
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| fermentation wrote: |
| Emeliu wrote: |
| Is it true that after work most Koreans go for hours on end with their coworkers and drink? How do married couples cope with this, I know this wouldn't fly in the states (as you'd be dubbed an alcoholic and tossed in the cleansing clinic). |
It obviously depends but here's my personal experience. My father did drink a lot and came home late with alcohol on his breath. I would say it was a few times a week when I was in middle school. He said it was sometimes unavoidable in order to get ahead in the Korean work environment as you have to suck up to your superiors and your co-workers will think you're an outcast if you don't join.
In the company I work at, I deliberately avoided these outings because I knew what they're like and I dislike drinking, and I have no desire to "move up" in this company. I got comments from people saying that I'm a loner or if I don't like people, exactly what I predicted they'll say. Sometimes my male coworkers come to work with hangovers. I know this because they talk about how much their head hurts and they talk about how much soju they slammed the night before. This seems to go on a few times week. Some of them are married, and some of them comment how their wife will give them crap for coming home late. This is just my limited experience but I've heard of many similar stories.
One incident that particularly bothered me was when I had to go a company dinner because of some big invest guy showed interest in our company. I was told there was no way I was not going, so I went. After all drinking and eating, the youngest married guy started going on about going to a room salon and asked my boss(who's a woman) for the corporate credit card so he can pay for the girls. He tried to get me to go as well. I have nothing against prostitution, but a married guy openly talking about how he's gonna go bang hookers in front of his female coworkers was kind of a shock to me. |
But you're Korean as you continue to mention. What about 우리나라? Pie-ting!!!! |
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Emeliu
Joined: 31 Mar 2009
Location: Korea, i'm OMW
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| Posted: Fri Jul 10, 2009 12:05 am Post subject: Re: Korean working drinking culture |
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| fermentation wrote: |
| Emeliu wrote: |
| Is it true that after work most Koreans go for hours on end with their coworkers and drink? How do married couples cope with this, I know this wouldn't fly in the states (as you'd be dubbed an alcoholic and tossed in the cleansing clinic). |
It obviously depends but here's my personal experience. My father did drink a lot and came home late with alcohol on his breath. I would say it was a few times a week when I was in middle school. He said it was sometimes unavoidable in order to get ahead in the Korean work environment as you have to suck up to your superiors and your co-workers will think you're an outcast if you don't join.
In the company I work at, I deliberately avoided these outings because I knew what they're like and I dislike drinking, and I have no desire to "move up" in this company. I got comments from people saying that I'm a loner or if I don't like people, exactly what I predicted they'll say. Sometimes my male coworkers come to work with hangovers. I know this because they talk about how much their head hurts and they talk about how much soju they slammed the night before. This seems to go on a few times week. Some of them are married, and some of them comment how their wife will give them crap for coming home late. This is just my limited experience but I've heard of many similar stories.
One incident that particularly bothered me was when I had to go a company dinner because of some big invest guy showed interest in our company. I was told there was no way I was not going, so I went. After all drinking and eating, the youngest married guy started going on about going to a room salon and asked my boss(who's a woman) for the corporate credit card so he can pay for the girls. He tried to get me to go as well. I have nothing against prostitution, but a married guy openly talking about how he's gonna go bang hookers in front of his female coworkers was kind of a shock to me. |
This is why I wouldn't want my spouse to work (if she were to be Korean) in a Korean company. |
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phoneboothface
Joined: 26 Apr 2009
Location: Korea
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| Posted: Fri Jul 10, 2009 12:07 am Post subject: |
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| We tried redaxe, *bleep* it we tried. |
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CentralCali
Joined: 17 May 2007
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| Posted: Fri Jul 10, 2009 12:09 am Post subject: |
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| He isn't really Korean, is he? I thought he was riding the gyopo train to get here. |
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Emeliu
Joined: 31 Mar 2009
Location: Korea, i'm OMW
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| Posted: Fri Jul 10, 2009 12:09 am Post subject: |
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| phoneboothface wrote: |
| We tried redaxe, *bleep* it we tried. |
Tried to do what? I know for a fact that my girlfriend's father, who owns a cell phone store, has to go out almost every night and drink with SKT company men, and that my girlfriend has to go and pick him up every night. The thing is, I'm unsure how rampant those actions are. In her family, none of the men lived past 55 years old. I wonder why? |
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fermentation
Joined: 22 Jun 2009
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| Posted: Fri Jul 10, 2009 12:22 am Post subject: |
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| CentralCali wrote: |
| He isn't really Korean, is he? I thought he was riding the gyopo train to get here. |
I'm Korean. I get mistaken for a gyopo a lot because of my English though.
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This is why I wouldn't want my spouse to work (if she were to be Korean) in a Korean company.
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Well, in my experience it was just the men. Women seem to be spared from most of it.
Some of the guys in my company recently got fired and I do seem to see less hangovers and hear less of the "I was so drunk last night" stories nowadays. |
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Emeliu
Joined: 31 Mar 2009
Location: Korea, i'm OMW
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| Posted: Fri Jul 10, 2009 12:36 am Post subject: |
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| fermentation wrote: |
| CentralCali wrote: |
| He isn't really Korean, is he? I thought he was riding the gyopo train to get here. |
I'm Korean. I get mistaken for a gyopo a lot because of my English though.
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This is why I wouldn't want my spouse to work (if she were to be Korean) in a Korean company.
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Well, in my experience it was just the men. Women seem to be spared from most of it.
Some of the guys in my company recently got fired and I do seem to see less hangovers and hear less of the "I was so drunk last night" stories nowadays. |
Well, your English skills are amazing. Some people who manage to score 990 on the TOEIC manage to fail at English.
And it seems your company was just getting a little crazy then, like a bad fraternity. Its good they got put in their place. |
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