The current Act requires employers to allow their employees to apply for parental leave or reduced working hours for the period of childcare for children who are not over the age of eight or the second grade of elementary school.

However, some point out that it is difficult for the current system to deal with the substantive demand for care as the age of the applicable children is excessively young and its divided use is limited, and that, although male workers are allowed to apply for parental leave under the current Act, the rate of its use is still low.

Furthermore, it is suggested that the effectiveness of the paternity leave system is undermined due to insufficient disciplinary measures against business owners who do not grant paternity leave for childcare applications or penalize workers after their return from paternity leave. 

Therefore, the Amendment aims to expand the scope of the workers who are eligible to apply for paternity leave or reduced working hours for the period of childcare to cover those with children who are not over the age of ten or the fourth grade of elementary school, allow the workers to use divided paternity leave not exceeding 3 occasions, and mandate all workers to use a paternity leave of at least 60 days to facilitate male workers active participation in childcare. 

In addition, the Amendment aims to raise the penalty for business owners who do not grant paternity leave applied for by workers by imprisonment with labor for up to one year or by a fine of up to 10 million won, mandate the Minister of Employment and Labor to conduct an investigation of the paternity leave applications and the implementation status thereof every three years and publish the results. A list of  business owners that penalize workers upon their return from paternity leave shall be published, thereby enhancing the childcare system (Articles 6-3, 19, 19-2, 19-4, 19-7, 37, and 39). 

Raise the penalty to punish business owners who do not grant paternity leave applied for by workers by imprisonment with labor for up to one year or by a fine of up to 10 million won, mandate the Minister of Employment and Labor to conduct an investigation of the paternity leave applications and the implementation status thereof every three years and publish the results. A list of business owners that penalize workers upon their return from paternity leave shall be published (Articles 6-3, 19, 19-2, 19-4, 19-7, 37, and 39).