Most Popular
-
1
Korean labor force to shrink by 10 million by 2044: report
-
2
[AtoZ Korean Mind] Does your job define who you are? Should it?
-
3
Allegations surrounding BTS resurface, enraged fans demand apology
-
4
Students with history of violence will be barred from becoming teachers
-
5
Medical feud leaves hospitals in financial crisis
-
6
Top prosecutor pledges 'speedy, strict' probe into first lady's luxury bag allegations
-
7
Samsung mocks Apple over iPhone alarm glitch
-
8
Chip up cycle won’t stay long: SK chief
-
9
'Queen of Tears' riding high on Netflix chart
-
10
Speaker floats dual citizenship as solution to falling births
-
Two Hyundai Motor contract workers ordered to end protest atop transmission tower
A local court ordered two Hyundai Motor Co. contract workers Thursday to end their two-month protest atop a power-transmission tower, saying rejection of the ruling will cause them to pay daily fines of 300,000 won (US$280).The two workers began the protest on Oct. 17, demanding permanent employment of contract workers. They complain that contract workers are paid far less than regular workers, although both groups do the same type of work. Hyundai Motor currently has about 6,800 contract worker
Dec. 27, 2012
-
Court rules retroactive anklet law constitutional
The Constitutional Court ruled on Thursday that the current law allowing retroactive enforcement of electronic anklets for convicted sex offenders is constitutional.The court dismissed a petition filed by a district court against a controversial clause of a subsidiary law on putting electronic anklets on convicted sex offenders who are likely to repeat crimes after their release.The monitoring system is “aimed at preventing repeat crimes by sex offenders and protecting the people from sex crimes
Dec. 27, 2012
-
Gender equality slightly improved last year: gov't report
South Korea's gender equality improved slightly last year, but the equality level deteriorated when it comes to safety due to the recent rise of heinous crimes against women, a government report showed Thursday.According to the 2012 report on Korea's gender equality by the Korean Women's Development Institute, the nation's equality index was 63.5 out of the full score of 100 for last year, up 0.3 points from 63.2 in 2010.The index measures gender equality in eight major categories: family, welfa
Dec. 27, 2012
-
Prosecution demands six-month term for late Roh’s daughter
The prosecution on Wednesday demanded a six-month jail term for late President Roh Moo-hyun’s daughter on charges of violating the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act.Roh Jeong-yeon is alleged to have illicitly wired 1.3 billion won ($1.2 million) to a Korean-American lawyer in 2008 to purchase a high-end apartment in New Jersey without reporting the outbound money transaction to the state authorities.During a court hearing at the Seoul Central District Court, Roh’s attorney Kwak Sang-eon claimed
Dec. 26, 2012
-
Social spending second lowest among OECD countries: report
The ratio of public social spending to the gross domestic product in Korea was the second lowest among OECD countries with 9.4 percent, a report showed on Wednesday.Mexico was the lowest with 8.2 percent while social spending amounted to 22.1 percent of GDP on average in the OECD area in 2009, OECD said in its recent report.Korea, however, experienced the fastest increase in real social spending between 2007 and 2012 at 37 percent, far exceeding the OECD average of 10 percent, it added.The repor
Dec. 26, 2012
-
Innisfree tea recalled on bacterial test
A tea product from Innisfree, a South Korean cosmetics company, has been recalled, authorities said on Wednesday.“Cactus Tea” with the expiration date of Nov. 27, 2014, failed to pass the bacterial test, according to the Korea Food & Drug Administration. Innisfree, a popular cosmetics shops, is taking the product in question off the market voluntarily. The KFDA said consumers should take the purchased tea back to the shop. From news reports(khnews@heraldcorp.com) <관련 한글 기사>이니스프리 ‘백년초티’서 기준치 초과
Dec. 26, 2012
-
S. Korea's welfare spending 2nd lowest among OECD nations: report
South Korea spends much less on public welfare than most other advanced countries compared to its gross domestic product (GDP), but the growth rate of its social expenditure far outpaces them, a report showed Wednesday.According to the report by the state-run Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, the ratio of South Korea's welfare spending to its GDP stood at 9.4 percent in 2009, the second lowest among 30 members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The
Dec. 26, 2012
-
Police officer arrested in vault burglary
A police officer has been arrested on suspicion of helping to rob a post office vault earlier this month, police said Wednesday.The 44-year-old officer, identified only by his surname Kim, is suspected of colluding with a robbery suspect, surnamed Park, in stealing some 52 million won ($48,408) worth of cash from the vault in this southwestern port city on Dec. 8, they said.The Yeosu Police Station said they have placed Kim under emergency arrest after obtaining a confession from Park who was ap
Dec. 26, 2012
-
Questions linger over Park’s pledges on education
Following is the fourth in a series of articles on President-elect Park Geun-hye’s key policies. ― Ed. Building a better education system is a quest for all governments, but the pressure is ever more intense and urgent for President-elect Park Geun-hye.Private education costs, added to swelling household debt, are weighing heavily on the whole economy. Mediocre classes are threatening to undermine national competitiveness. Cutthroat competition for academic excellence is driving stressed student
Dec. 25, 2012
-
Police arrest runaway rape suspect
A man who escaped five days ago from a police station where he was being questioned for rape allegations has been arrested, local police said Tuesday.Noh Young-dae, 32, was found hiding in a residential building in Ansan, Gyeonggi Provice at 4:25 p.m., with his left hand still handcuffed, the police said. Noh, alleged of raping a woman at an Ilsan, Gyeonggi Province apartment earlier this month, had been apprehended for questioning on Dec. 17. He fled the Ilsan police station on Dec. 20 while of
Dec. 25, 2012
-
Korean workers’ average age approaches 40
A rapidly graying population is changing the look of Korea’s labor force, with the average age of workers approaching 40, according to government data. Workers’ age averaged 39.6 in 2011, up from 36.5 in 2001, according to a report released Sunday by the Ministry of Employment and Labor. In 2001, young workers, aged 15-29, were the biggest demographic group in the labor pool, with their number coming to 4.27 million. This group has shrunk by 15.6 percent over the past decade to 3.6 million, whil
Dec. 24, 2012
-
Mastermind of contract killing caught in U.S.
Korean and international police have recently caught in Los Angeles the suspected mastermind of a contract killing of a woman 16 years ago.The 56-year-old man, known to be a member of a Chinese gang operating in Los Angeles, is suspected of sending his henchmen to Seoul in 1996 to kill the woman. The husband of the then 45-year-old victim asked the man, identified by his surname Kim, to kill her while the couple was in the process of divorce, police said. The wife had requested 5 billion won ($4
Dec. 24, 2012
-
Seoul considers action against illegal stem cell operations in Japan
The Ministry of Health and Welfare will consider taking legal action against a Korean biotech company involved in illegal stem cell operations of Korean patients in Japan and China, officials said on Monday.The move came after a Japanese newspaper reported on a dermatology clinic in Fukuoka administering stem cell injections to hundreds of Korean patients a month.About 500 patients a month were injected with manufactured stem cells in hospitals without approval in Korea, by a Seoul-based bio ven
Dec. 24, 2012
-
Thousands of singles gather in Christmas Eve blind date
Braving the freezing cold and safety concerns, thousands of young singles gathered at a recreational park in central Seoul to find their Mr. and Ms. Rights on Christmas Eve.Korea’s largest outdoor blind date called “Solo Battle” was held in Yeouido Park, though there were fewer-than-expected participants amid the chilly weather. In the morning, the mercury hit minus 14 degrees Celsius, the lowest this winter. “I am looking forward to finding a date. I have a little hope that I can find the one
Dec. 24, 2012
-
‘Private education costs for preschoolers surge’
Despite increased state support for child care, many parents are spending more money on private education for children under age 6, a report showed on Monday.According to research by the Korea Institute of Child Care and Education, the country’s private education market for preschool children is estimated to be 2.7 trillion won ($2.5 billion), which accounts for 0.2 percent of gross domestic product. Private education for infants includes “play schools” taught both in Korean and English, culture
Dec. 24, 2012
-
Korea eyes 3,000 social enterprises by 2017: ministry
The government aims to increase the number of social enterprises to 3,000 from the current 774 by 2017, the Ministry of Employment and Labor said Monday. Under the ministry’s five-year plan starting next year, the government will expand support of social enterprises throughout their entire business cycle, from start-ups, marketing and sales strategies to financial consulting. Social enterprises are for-profit yet social mission-driven companies such as a bakery hiring disabled persons as bakers
Dec. 24, 2012
-
Mass blind date held on Christmas Eve
Braving the freezing cold and safety concerns, thousands of young singles gathered at a recreational park in central Seoul to find their Mr. and Ms. Rights on Christmas Eve.Korea’s largest outdoor blind date called “Solo Battle” was held in Yeouido Park though there were fewer-than-expected participants amid the chilly weather. In the morning the mercury hit minus 14 degrees Celsius, the lowest this winter. “I am looking forward to finding a date. I have a little hope that I can find the one am
Dec. 24, 2012
-
Seamen from sunken freighter rescued by H.K. vessel
A Hong Kong-registered merchant ship has rescued all of the 17 South Korean and Myanmarese seamen from a sunken South Korean vessel early Sunday, South Korean maritime police said.All the 17 crewmen of the 2,518-ton South Korean vessel were moved to a lifeboat late Saturday when the vessel sank in waters 185 miles northeast of the Philippines, a maritime police spokesman said.Upon getting a distress report, a South Korean patrol plane rushed to the scene and asked for help from the Hong Kong fre
Dec. 23, 2012
-
Seoul recruits experts on foreign languages
The South Korean government has recruited seven experts on foreign languages other than English to help promote the country’s image abroad.The seven, two experts on Chinese, and one each on Spanish, French, Vietnamese, Russian and Arabic, will translate and interpret for officials of various government agencies while engaging in jobs on international relations and promotion of the national brand of South Korea, the Ministry of Public Administration and Security said Sunday.Their annual salary ra
Dec. 23, 2012
-
Japanese Dokdo expert dies
Naito Seichu, a Japanese historian well known for his research against Japan’s claims to Dokdo, died on Dec. 16 due to illness, Yonhap News reported. He was 82He was emeritus professor at Shimane University in Japan. Japan claims the official document dated 1905 from Japan’s Shimane prefectural government shows that the islets, called Takeshima in Japan, were pronounced as its territory.But Seichu pointed out that in 1696, the ruler of Japan acknowledged that the islets were Korean territory. (5
Dec. 23, 2012