More than half of SMEs to skip Chuseok bonuses

A recent survey conducted by the Korea Federation of SMEs reveals that more than half of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are likely to skip providing Chuseok bonuses to their employees in the upcoming year. Financial difficulties are cited as the primary reason for this decision. According to the survey, 45.1 percent of the 1,000 SME member companies polled plan to provide Chuseok bonuses.

Among those, 1.2 percent intend to increase the bonus payments, 40.5 percent plan to keep the same level as the previous year, and 3.4 percent plan to reduce them. A significant 54.9 percent either decided not to provide bonuses or have not yet made a decision, with 30.8 percent of this group never having provided separate bonuses before and 7.7 percent citing financial constraints as the reason for not providing them this year.

For those planning to offer bonuses, companies that pay a percentage of the employees' salary will provide an average of 37.7 percent of their base pay, while those offering a fixed amount will provide an average of 665,000 won ($493) per employee. Additionally, companies outside the Seoul metropolitan area reported higher average bonus levels compared to those in the capital region.