1990년대 이후 한국 여성노동의 현황과 성평등 과제

Abstract

In order to examine the current status of women's labor in Korean society since the 1990s, two important social factors must be considered. One is the neo-liberal economic system, and the other is the service industrialization process. These two factors have influenced women's status and role changes in the labor market in various ways. The flexibilization of labor conferred the socio-economic status of non-regular workers to women who were forced to participate in the labor market. It also accelerated the gendered polarization in the labor market. The development of the service industry has led to the increase of the number of female workers with the higher education in the field of distribution, personal and public services. In the Korean society since the 1990s, women's increasing participation in economic activity has been caused by the combination of the desire for personal self-realization attributable to higher education levels and increased job opportunities due to the development of the service industry. In an age where women's participation in the labor market is no longer a choice but a necessity, demanding equal labor opportunities and wages is a task for women’s labor movements. In this paper, I will look into the objective status and reality of women's labor after the 1990s, and analyze the changes in the status and role of women's labor in the Korean labor market. In the process of changing women's labor, I would like to think about the current challenges and prospects of women's labor by looking at how the women's labor movement harmonizes gender equality with union activities.