Unionized bus drivers in Seoul went on their first general strike in 12 years Thursday morning, but withdrew the protest later the same afternoon after reaching an agreement with the city over wages. At 3:20 p.m., the Seoul Metropolitan Government officially announced it had reached a new wage deal with the union and the Seoul Bus Transportation Business Association. According to the deal, the drivers will see a 4.48 percent wage increase and receive up to 650,000 won ($480) in holiday benefits.

Social Affairs March 28, 2024

As the season of cherry blossoms approaches in Seoul, the Songpa-gu district office is gearing up to host its annual cherry blossom festival at Seokchon Lake Park from Wednesday to Sunday. The park, which spans 2.6 kilometers, is filled with almost 1,100 cherry blossom trees. According to the district office of Songpa-gu, the lake has been around for 50 years, with cherry trees donated by Lotte -- which operates establishments in the district including a theme park on an island in the lake -- an

Social Affairs March 27, 2024

The Seoul Metropolitan Government on Tuesday unveiled plans to transform a major part of the city north of the Han River into a new economic center, one that is "up to the level of Gangnam." During the briefing, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said the city government plans to redevelop areas of Seoul north of the Han River by easing regulations placed on residential and commercial areas that are more than 30 years old, turning them into high-tech industrial clusters and new residential areas w

Social Affairs March 26, 2024

An ophthalmologist in his 40s from Pusan National University Hospital died in his home early Sunday morning, according to the Busan Metropolitan Police Agency on Monday. On Sunday at 4:30 a.m., police officials received a call that the doctor was found unconscious in his home. When emergency medical services reached the doctor’s home, he did not have a pulse nor was he breathing, according to police officials. The doctor was immediately taken to the Inje University Haeundae Paik Hospital n

Social Affairs March 25, 2024

Up to 40 millimeters of rain is set to fall in most regions of South Korea from Friday afternoon, to persist nationwide through Saturday morning, the Korea Meteorological Administration said Friday. As a pressure trough approaches from the northwest, the KMA forecast that rain will begin to fall from Friday afternoon in Greater Seoul -- which includes the capital alongside Incheon and Gyeonggi Province -- Gangwon Province, the Chungcheong Provinces, western regions of the Jeolla Provinces and Je

Social Affairs March 22, 2024

The South Korean Board of Audit and Inspection has initiated an inquiry into allegations that the Defense Ministry and other government agencies neglected to verify the demolition of front-line guard posts, which North Korea was supposed to undertake according to the 2018 inter-Korean military agreement. According to both the BAI and the Defense Ministry on Friday, an inspection began Monday, following an earlier audit request from the nonprofit organization Korean Retired Generals and Admirals

North Korea March 22, 2024

Seoul ranked 10th out of 133 cities in the 35th edition of the Global Financial Centers Index report, released Thursday afternoon, overtaking Paris, Beijing and Tokyo. The index has been published biannually since 2007 in March and September by the Z/Yen Group, a London-based think tank, in collaboration with the China Development Institute, to evaluate the international financial competitiveness of cities globally. The GFCI report is compiled based on five evaluation criteria -- human capital,

Social Affairs March 21, 2024

Mobile identification cards, such as the driver’s license and the mobile national veteran's registration card, were to start being issued on Samsung Wallet from Wednesday, said the Ministry of Interior and Safety. On Wednesday, the Interior Ministry hosted an open event with Samsung Electronics to publicly announce the introduction of digital ID cards. At the event, Interior Minister Lee Sang-min and Chair Go Jin from the Presidential Committee on the Digital Platform Government demon

Social Affairs March 20, 2024

US actor Daniel Dae Kim received a certificate of honorary Seoul citizenship on Wednesday, in recognition of his efforts in promoting Seoul through "Butterfly," an upcoming Amazon Prime Video series. "Butterfly" is a spy thriller series that centers around the character David Jung, a former US intelligence operative living in South Korea. Kim is both the lead actor and the executive producer of the six-episode series. Since February, Kim has been filming around several Seoul

Social Affairs March 20, 2024

Only half of South Korea's adult population is willing to get married, with fewer than half expressing intentions to have children in the future, according to the Presidential Committee on Ageing Society and Population Policy on Sunday. The presidential committee shared findings from a survey conducted by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, which polled 2,000 respondents aged between 19 and 49 in August last year. The survey revealed that among the 1,059 unmarried respondents

Social Affairs March 17, 2024

Individuals from South Korea, China, and Japan perceive lawmakers as holding the highest societal status job, whereas those from the United States and Germany consider firefighters to have the highest social status, according to survey results released Sunday. The Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education and Training conducted the survey from July to August 2023. The survey involved 7,500 employed individuals aged between 18 to 64 across five different countries: South Korea, China, Ger

Social Affairs March 17, 2024

A total of 2,018 cases of speeding and traffic signal violations were detected after bidirectional traffic enforcement cameras were installed in four locations across Gyeonggi Province, according to the National Police Agency on Thursday. Bidirectional traffic enforcement cameras capture license plates on both the front and rear ends of a vehicle. These are different from the traditional kinds of cameras installed in most locations nationwide which are only capable of capturing license plates on

Social Affairs March 14, 2024

Gyeonggi Bukbu Provincial Police Agency said Tuesday it had uncovered a cybercrime ring accused of operating an illegal gambling website and attracting minors into gambling. Police apprehended 35 suspects, including the ringleader in his 40s, on suspicion of operating illegal gambling websites for five years, from December 2018 to March this year. Out of the 35 suspects, 10 had been arrested as of Tuesday. According to police officials, the criminal ring operated gambling websites out of Dubai a

Social Affairs March 13, 2024

Meteorological drought levels are forecast to remain normal nationwide, due to high levels of precipitation over the past few months compared to previous years, the Ministry of Interior and Safety said Tuesday. According to the Interior Ministry, the total precipitation levels recorded over the past six months reached up to 504.7 millimeters nationwide -- 150.6 percent above the average precipitation levels recorded between 1991 and 2020. In February alone, up to 102.6 mm of rain was recorded, m

Social Affairs March 12, 2024

The Seoul Metropolitan Government and Wad, the developer behind the app Catch Table, will sign a business agreement Tuesday to make it easier for international tourists without Korean phone numbers to make restaurant reservations and join online queues. The move comes amid an increase in the number of international visitors coming to South Korea for culinary tourism purposes. According to a survey conducted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, in 2022, 68 percent of tourists answered

Social Affairs March 11, 2024