주 52시간 상한제가 근로자의 일･생활 균형에 미친 영향: 성별 차이를 중심으로

Abstract

According to a survey of workers in businesses with 100 or more employees who have experienced the 52-hour work week system up to a maximum of four years, an increase of working hours was reported only in 0.7% of women and 1% of men, with the rest having experienced no change or a decrease. With regard to the changes in the working environment, “work efficiency” and “leaving work on time” increased, while “labor intensity” and “management’s controlling of working hours” also increased. When asked about changes in time use after the introduction of the 52-hour ceiling, men reported higher levels of increase in “time spent doing domestic chores” and “time spent for taking care of children and family” than women. When “greater autonomy in determining working hours,” “work-life balance of individuals,” and “changes in the practice of working long hours” were cited as accomplishments of the maximum 52-hour work week system, the percentage of positive responses were high both in women and men. The accomplishments of the maximum 52-hour work week system was analyzed using linear regression by assigning “work-life balance” as the dependent variable, and it was found that the 52-hour ceiling had a more positive effect on the work-life balance of women than men. Regardless of gender, the 52-hour ceiling’s effect on “work-life balance” decreased in proportion to increased actual total working hours, and the increase in “work efficiency” and “leaving work on time” enabled by the maximum 52-hour work week had a positive (+) effect on “work-life balance”. “Work-life balance” was negatively influenced by the increase of “labor intensity” for women and “management’s controlling of working hours” for men. The implementation of the “selective working hours system” was the only factor that positively influenced men’s “work-life balance” while the remaining systems of “flexible working hours system” and “discretionary working system” had no significant impact on the “work-life balance” of women and men alike. The maximum 52-hour work week system can be evaluated as having contributed to breaking gender stereotypes at work and home, considering that the 52-hour ceiling improved women’s “work-life balance” and increased men’s “time spent doing domestic chores” and “time spent taking care of children and family.”