Earticle

It is obvious that people want their welfare to increase. However, there is still repulsion which excessive welfare benefit can cause some problems and criticism that it will be the factor which interfere economic growth in uncertain financial situation. In relation that, an argument is lasting about that which nom we should pursuit first between welfare and economic growth/ job creating, and our welfare policy doesn't maintain consistently and keeps changing. I think That's because there is no certain standard or principle in our welfare policy. Therefore, I will find out our country's implication for welfare system, through knowing the welfare of the democratic socialism party that advocates the democratic socialism in Germany and Sweden.

Before the “Act on Employment Promotion and Vocational Rehabilitation for Disabled Persons” (AEPVRD) was enacted, the Korean Supreme Court dealt with the cases of treatment of disabled employees in the workplace. First, the Court did not consider such cases as a violation of the anti-discrimination law. Second, the Court classified disabled employees in two ways, specifying whether the employee's disability or injuries are due to a job-related accident or not. If job related, the Court imposed the employer's obligation to consider the disabled or injured persons. However, if the employee's accident or injuries were not job-related, justification (e.g., for firing, transferring, etc.) for business reasons would receive more consideration. Even though the employer did not accommodate the disabled person, the Court did not impose the employer's obligation to accommodate. Since the enactment of the AEPVRD, there has yet to be a claim made to the Supreme Court concerning the employer's duty to accommodate a disabled employee. However, the Administrative Court recently has dealt with one such case. Regardless of the terminology selected by the court, and regardless of whether the accidents or injuries are job-related or not, in this case the court imposed on the employer the duty to accommodate the disabled employees. However, the court did not decide this case based on the AEPVRD. Still the employer's duty to accommodate has limitations in its interpretation because the employer's obligation to consider the disabled persons has to be interpreted based on the employment contract. In this article, I analyze the Supreme Court decisions before the enactment of the AEPVRD and how the Administrative Court approached the employer's duty to accommodate disabled persons, and suggest how Korea should approach and interpret job-related and non-job-related accidents or injuries. This needs to be clarified in order to provide accommodation for the employees, because it is not only the duty of employers but also the right of the employees.

Before Gender Equality Act of 1987 was established, Korean women were deprived of their basic human rights for no other reason than their gender. Women have been unfairly discriminated against for many years in education, employment and policies in Korea. Through many feminist campaigns and lots of amendments of Gender Equality Act the legal status of Korean women have been improved to a large extent. So women today are becoming more active in society, especially in the business field. Meanwhile, after the low birth rate has come to the fore as a serious social issue in the middle of 1990s, the overriding priority of Gender Equality Act has been transferred from the equal treatment between men and women in employment to the low fertility policies, e.g. financial support for the work family life reconciliation. However, the equal treatment between men and women in employment must be distinct from financial support for the work family life reconciliation even if the latter originally has been derived from the former. Because the main purposes of the both policies have nothing in common with each other, the policies must be regulated by the different acts. In addition the regulations for the equal treatment between men and women should adapt to existing reality. In some respects women are not necessarily discriminated gender who need to be protected by the law. There are many professional carrier women with more ability than average men. In that sense occupation ability development and the affirmative actions which aim to improve the employment of women, are not adequate for the real Korean society in which men (especially in old age) have more difficulty to find the job than women in the same age. Further the regulations of maternity leave and the reduction of working hour in the period of infant care, which protect themselves the women, are not realistic because female workers of small businesses can’t exercise their legal rights. So the lawmaker should also consider whether the existing law is appropriate for the real. In this respect the law should be consistent with not only the justice, but also the reality. Most people hope that in the future Gender Equality Act should not be necessary with a result of the realization of gender equality in the workplace.

This study aims to analyze the economic effect of educational cost support for low-income group, and also suggest legal support measures. Analyzing economic theories about educational cost support for low-income group, the public support of education is proper under the economic functions of educational investment. Through educational investment, we can expect effects like formation of human capital and selection of labor market signal, and also sustainable economy in the aspect of technical advance. In the aspect of macroeconomics, the earing rate of educational investment is increased by the enhanced investment demand, and the scale of balanced investment is unchangeable. Meanwhile, the income redistributive effect brought by providing equal educational opportunities empowers the government support policies in the aspect of educational welfare. The above graph estimated from Mincerian Earning's Function shows that earnings(earned income) are increased when the level of education(the number of education years) is higher. It is also expected that the inflation width of wages would be larger when the earning rate of educational investment is increased. In order for such educational cost support for low-income group, the new government decided to expand free education, free childcare and also the standard of lower income group to less than 50% of the medium income. In regard of dormitory facility scale in the whole universities and colleges, the average dormitory acceptance ratio is about 23% for junior colleges and about 30% for universities in 2011. For low-income students, it is necessary for schools, operational corporations and local governments to support subsidy for dormitory fee. Meanwhile, the current educational cost support for low-income students is based on Elementary and Secondary Education Act. The tentatively named, 'Low-Income Group Independence Bill' on the way of enactment in 2013 should become legal support measures to achieve more enhanced educational welfare, without causing conflicts with the existing laws.