[Photo] Secretary General says Mexico and Korea share notoriety of highest working hours in OECD

During a visit by Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Secretary-General Ángel Gurría to the Blue House that was hosted by President Moon Jae-in on Oct. 19, the Mexican-born Gurría stated that, “Korea and Mexico have the distinction of being the countries in OECD with the longest working hours, but also are stuck at half the average level of worker productivity.” He went on to say that part of the reason for the discrepancy was due to, “favor[ing] the unions by having a more rigid labor market and keeping wages high,” which he linked to restricting access to the job market for younger workers. President Moon has made addressing widening economic inequality and youth unemployment priorities of his administration. “If youth unemployment is a problem because of insufficient access to the labor market, or if there is a labor shortage for small businesses, the government is actively trying to solve this,” said Blue House spokesman Park Su-hyun.