국민연금법상 양성평등의 실현과제

Abstract

Formally women and men in Korea have the same rights at all points of law. Although both men and women have the same opportunity to acquire pension entitlements, the fact remains, that women still continue to be at a disadvantage in the acquisition of such pension rights. Women typically do not participate in the workforce for as many years as men. Due to societal gender roles, more women leave the work force to care for young children or elderly relatives. Because the pension law does not consider the gender of recipients when calculating their benefits, a man and a woman with identical work histories receive the same benefits. Yet gender neutral treatment by pension Administration results in significantly lower benefits for women because during their working years, women working full time receive about 62.3% for every dollar(Won) men earn. Despite an increasing number of women in the workforce, in addition, they remain concentrated in low-paying or part-time jobs, resulting in less earnings and benefits. This is, in part, a result of taking time off to care for families, which may result in fewer qualifications and lead to lower paying jobs. The older the women, the greater the earning gap. This lower earning power also decreases pension benefits. The Korean pension system has been slow to adopt provisions that compensate for inherent inequalities in the labor market. Throughout its history, social security has functioned as a wagereplacement program that links benefits to paid labor. The distinction between wage and non-wage labor generally works to the disadvantage of women relative to men, and it has led some scholars to view the invisibility of unpaid housework as the fundamental problem with the current system. The most accepted provision to compensate women for their interrupted work careers and low wages is to reward them with credit for care-giving. A recognition of the importance of women’s work would more accurately reflect women’ valuable contributions to the economy. Once formally recognized, society is likely to value nonmarket housework activities similarly to market activities, thereby entitling women to pension benefits that are currently tied only to waged labor in the market. Compensation for their interruptions of work for the purpose of child rearing does lead to the creation of personal entitlements, well adapted to the present evolution of social attitudes. However, the most serious inequalities affect those women who, because of a specific type of activity or because they do not engage in a gainful employment, are in a situation which is not comparable to that of men. Reduction of these inequalities presupposes changes in labor legislation and in legislation affecting the family. Social security cannot eliminate existing inequality in the sphere of work but it can contribute to its attenuation. And social security can remove part of the problem by not reinforcing traditional sex roles and by favoring a more equitable sharing of responsibilities through family policy measures that are equally available to both sexes.