Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Troll_Bait]

Age Discrimination Banned in Recruitment

[Zolt]

Nice, just one question: does law also apply to room salon workers? could be funny.

[richardlang]

In response to your signature, after school each day there's a truck loaded with strawberries and rigged with a loudspeaker blaring a recording about his low prices. It's so funny.

[VanIslander]

It's about time.

This year is the 30th anniversary of the passing of the Canadian Human Rights Act (1977) which explicitly prohibits discrimination based on age, among several other stated factors. Exactly a quarter century ago this year the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (1982) also rallied against discrimination based on age.

The new Korean law supports my general impression that this country is about 25-30 years behind my home country, in a lot of things (in terms of social progress/change).

[Yaya]

Let's see just how effective the new law is. Truth is, the U.S. also has anti-age discrimination laws but they can be hard to enforce as employers can find ways to circumvent them.

It's also hard to prove age discrimination because the employers can simply say "We found someone better."

[Saxiif]

I am sure that this will have a massive impact on hiring practices.

[Roch]

[andy202]

But gender discrimination carries on being OK?

And what about the hiring-people-because-they're "very beautiful" type discrimination?

Discrimination is in the blood of Koreans and I think it would take a cultural revolution before we see the kind of mindset present in the western work environment.

Koreans, bless their hearts, will stop their arbitrary discrimination the same day they stop gobbing on the sidewalk and start queuing for things.

ie, never

[billybrobby]

[Milwaukiedave]

I'm skeptical this will have any effect on foreign teachers. First of all, who is going to believe us over a Korean. Second, the burden would probably fall on us to prove there was discrimination. Third, as someone pointed out the laws are difficult to enforce. In the US in most instances (except where it relates specifically to the job) a perspective employer can't ask your age. Recruiters and schools DO ask these kinds of questions in Korean and my guess is that they will continue to do so.

[jazblanc77]

There are ways to reword a job description so that it is still still discriminates against certain applicants based on ageism, sexism, racism, etc.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Until the Korean law enforcement community is able to uphold any of these "progressive" pieces of legislation, the simple passing of a bill is still a very small bit of news for me.

This will be just like any other new law; they'll pass it and then noone will enforce it. Just like men with mixed blood now being able to serve in the military. Sure they CAN legally serve, but none are actually doing so due to the precedence that they cannot be accomodated. That legislation was more political than truthful and so will this legislation for curbing discrimination in the workplace.

[Yaya]

Like I said, age discrimination laws are hard to enforce. Yes, want ads cannot mention age limits but it's pretty easy for someone to get a sense of your age based on other factors.

It's NOT just Korea that has this problem.