Less stress, more freedom the best job match for many
An increasing number of Koreans are leaving well-paid professions for less stressful jobs that give them more time for themselves. Thirty-four-year-old "Mr. Lee" works at a telecommunications company, but is opting for something else. "The industry I’m in pays well and the decision wasn't easy, but I needed more time to spend with my family," he says.The recent trend in Korea to place more emphasis on a mindset known in Korean by the English term "well-being" is encouraging an ever-growing number of working professionals to abandon the intense competition of the workplace and move to jobs that give them more breathing room. It is a phenomenon already observed in Europe, where people who seek jobs that allow them to enjoy life instead of large salaries and the social status that accompanies are being referred to as "downshifters." When Korea’s patent agency, the Korean Intellectual Property Office, set out to hire 50 experts in various areas of technology last March, a surprising number of Ph.D.-holding employees of Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics submitted applications. Many were hired and are now civil servants. Twenty Ph.D. holders from Samsung Electronics moved over to the patent office during a similar round of hiring last year. They are being paid half of what they used to receive, even in their new relatively well-paid government jobs. "Working here has various advantages, such as exemption from being under the scrutiny of patent lawyers," says a patent office official. "But a considerable number of these new employees came for reasons like their own mental well being." Even at a time when young people struggle to start their careers, many among them are insisting on jobs that have a more relaxed atmosphere. In a recent survey by the job-finding website "Career," "atmosphere" was cited as the most important workplace condition by 19.2 percent of respondents, followed by "salary" (25.1 percent) and "stability" (23.4 percent). Big business is responding by giving employees more incentives of a less tangible nature. Samsung and LG are encouraging workers to take advantage of company-owned condominiums, and Samsung Electronics’ LCD department recently started a "weekend ranch," where families can enjoy time away from the big city. SK Telecom, SK Communications, Auction, and other companies are offering long-term employees month-long "sabbaticals." "Job seekers are placing more importance on time for hobbies and their families than on being paid for fighting it out in jobs where competition is intense," said Sin Gil-ja of Career. "Workplaces where you get to leave on time, like state-run corporations and universities, have become the most popular."
