Weekly Holiday Allowance: Korea's Paid Day Off
It is like getting a free bonus day of pay simply for showing up to every shift you promised to work that week.
Definition The weekly holiday allowance (known in South Korea as juhyu-sudang) is a legally mandated extra day of pay given to employees who work at least 15 hours a week and maintain perfect attendance on their scheduled workdays. In essence, workers get paid for a rest day as if they had worked.
Why You Get Paid on Your Day Off
When you work diligently through the week, you deserve time to rest and recharge. South Korea's Labor Standards Act requires employers to provide at least one paid weekly rest day so workers do not burn out. On this designated rest day, an employee receives a full day of pay without clocking in.
To qualify for this paid day off, you must meet two main conditions. First, your contractual working hours must be at least 15 hours per week. Second, you must achieve perfect attendance by showing up on every scheduled workday.
Being late or leaving early still counts as attendance as long as you do not skip the day entirely. As long as you show up for every scheduled shift, occasional tardiness will not disqualify you from receiving your full weekly holiday allowance.
How Much Is the Allowance?
Full-time employees working 40 hours a week typically receive an extra 8 hours of pay (one standard day's wage). But how is it calculated for part-time workers at convenience stores or cafes? For part-timers, paid rest hours are calculated proportionally: divide the weekly hours worked by 40, then multiply by 8.
For example, if you work 20 hours a week, the formula is (20 Γ· 40) Γ 8 = 4 paid rest hours. If your hourly wage is 10,000 KRW (about $7.50), you receive an extra 40,000 KRW in holiday pay on top of your base weekly earnings.
Because of this bonus, your effective hourly earnings are noticeably higher than your base rate. A part-time job listed at 10,000 KRW per hour actually pays roughly 12,000 KRW per hour once this allowance is factored into your paycheck.
Legal Rules and Real-World Impact
Many believe this benefit applies only to larger companies, but it is strictly mandatory even for single-employee businesses. Even if an employer writes a contract clause excluding holiday pay or agrees on it with the worker, that clause is legally void. Withholding it counts as wage theft.
However, workers scheduled for under 15 hours a week are exempt. To cut labor costs, some small business owners hire multiple part-timers for just 14 hours eachβa controversial practice known as shift splitting.
In the past, employees also had to be scheduled to work the following week to receive pay for their final week. Under updated labor guidelines, you now receive your final week's allowance as long as you maintained your contract and completed all scheduled shifts during that final week.
π€ Common misconceptions
Only full-time permanent staff receive the weekly holiday allowance, not part-time workers.
Regardless of contract type or job title, any worker who logs 15 or more hours per week and completes all scheduled shifts is legally entitled to weekly holiday pay.
π§Ί Where you meet it
A legal right under Korean labor law that grants an extra paid rest day each week to anyone working at least 15 scheduled hours with full attendance.