Korean Job Discussion Forums

inthewild · Joined: 28 Mar 2004 Location: Korea

In his first few years, when he's working like 80 hours a week or something. At some random company. Maybe too broad a question but oh well.

The search thing blitzed or something and not much luck with Google, either. Thanks.

eamo · Joined: 08 Mar 2003 Location: Shepherd's Bush, 1964.

My guess is between 2.2 and 2.7million. I say this because that's the minimum the average Korean guy with a wife and two kids could live on. And I mean minimum!

Things are much better if you work for a big chaebol like Samsung. They offer lots of benefits.

Real Reality will be along to tell us they earn more than a hagwon teacher any....second...now....

schwa · Joined: 18 Jan 2003 Location: Yap

Based on conversations with general office workers around my education office, about the same as entry-level foreign english teachers. More like 50-60 hours. No housing of course & no vacation. Some really smart people among them too.

eamo · Joined: 08 Mar 2003 Location: Shepherd's Bush, 1964.

So I just asked my Korean friend and I was over-estimating. A starting level salary man would be lucky to make 2.0 million. It's more like 1.7-1.8.

How they support a family on that I don't know. I'm told it's through a lot of company loans.

One example I know for certain of is a 24 year old girl who graduated from Yonsei Uni and has a TOEIC score of 975. She's working as a junior translator for 1.5 million per month Shocked

Too much criteria in Korea is based on age, gender, and time served.

Koreabound2004 · Joined: 19 Nov 2003

http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/korea/viewtopic.php?t=36554

Check out this thread, I started it the other day...very little interest generated...but it has lots of stats on there about salaries in Korea...

As far as salary men working...the men working my public school and education office....they may work long hours indeed... but they are not necessarily working hard!!! I don't feel sorry for them at all! Most spend the day playing games on the net, listening to music, buying pens and other crap online, drinking tea or whatever and smoking...if they actually worked, they could go home much earlier...it's all a front so they can spend more time mistress hunting and pretend to be big strong hard working men. Most do jack *Beep* Can't speak for the men at those big companies, but I doubt it's all that different there:P

kangnamdragon · Joined: 17 Jan 2003 Location: Kangnam, Seoul, Korea

I don't know anyone that makes more than 2 million that is in his 20s. Most make about 1.5ish.

tzechuk · Joined: 20 Dec 2004

Starting salary at our company for a fresh graduate is 1.3m plus benefits. MS gets more. Samsung and the likes pay more because they are big companies. I am told around 1.5/1.6m plus benefits.

Real Reality · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Location: Seoul

Survey sees salary gap at entry level
At least for the first three years on the job, entry-level workers earn more at Korean companies than they do at international companies, a new survey shows. According to the study by HR Partners, a head-hunting company, which surveyed 81 major foreign companies in Korea, the average first-year wage for college graduates stood at 24 million won ($23,300). The salary is 8.2 percent less than what graduates can expect from 120 major Korean firms surveyed. "Foreign companies pay for performance is much higher than Korean companies," said Chung Yoo-min at HR Partners. "Even if employees at foreign companies receive a smaller annual salary than those at Korean companies, the growth rate of the wages is faster and usually exceeds the salaries at Korean companies within three years." By sector, foreign financial institutions pay an average of 32 million won to first-year workers. Those in the oil industry earn 27. 50 million won; 27.20 million won for IT and telecommunications; 27.18 million won for clothing and pharmaceuticals; 26.50 million won for food and beverages; and 24.50 million won for general manufacturing firms.
by Kwon Hyuk-joo and Lee Ho-jeong, JoongAng Daily (January 26, 2005)
http://joongangdaily.joins.com/200501/26/200501262242486979900090509051.html

plus benefits
plus benefits
plus benefits

chiaa · Joined: 23 Aug 2003

Real Reality · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Location: Seoul

Ya-ta Boy · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Location: Established in 1994

I know the salary of two of my Korean friends. The 1.5 million range is correct.

KS is an architect. He lives in Seoul in a company dorm with 3 other workers. His wife and daughter live in their hometown with his parents. He gets time to see them twice a month. He thinks that within 5 years he will have saved enough money for them to buy an apartment and live together.

SJ is 32 and some kind of computer geek. He is engaged but they are waiting for him to save enough money to get married. He lives with his older sister and younger brother.

In '97 I knew a secretary living in Taejon. She made 800,000 a month. Her husband and daughter lived in Kwangju with his parents. My friend got to see her husband and child twice a month.

bossaco · Joined: 13 Feb 2005 Location: jongro-gu

my korean husband works for a trading company (LCD/PDP/DLP TV) and takes home about 1.7million a month... he's been working there for 5 months now...

his brother works for a big chain supermarket as an accountant for more than 5 years... he gets about 2 million a month...

sparkx · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Location: thekimchipot.com

Here at my company (one of Korea's biggest) the starting salary for a 20 something assistant manager is 1.5-1.8/year. This, however, doesn't include bonuses (around 2 million per year).

Here's the catch though- all of these guys are given x number of vacation days per year (between 10-20 depending on their position) but nobody takes them. It's an unwritten rule that if you take all of your designated vacation days during the year, you may as well start looking for a new job.

The other interesting thing is that a lot of these guys have absolutely no interest in becoming managers. By remaining an assistant manager or even office worker, you are better protected under Korean labor laws AND you aren't at the beck and call of upper management. Basically if you are a manager expect to work 80 hours per week including Saturdays and don't even think about leaving the office before your superiors...

Real Reality · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Location: Seoul

sparkx · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Location: thekimchipot.com

All of the guys in my team graduated from top tier Korean universities. A new guy that started last week graduated from UBC and lived in Canada for 10 plus years. All of them had to pass a standard English test and receive above average TOIEC scores.

As for annual pay increases, i'm not too sure of but i know its nowhere near what foreigners receive who work in the corporate sector. I honestly think that HR takes personal situations into account when deciding on pay increases. For example, the majority of 20 something guys i work with still live at home with their parents. Those who get married and move out of their house can use that as leverage when negotiating. Even at that I can't imagine it's too substantial.