"More Male Public Officials Take Parental Leave Than Females"...First Reversal Since 1994

10,704 Men, Accounting for 56% of Total
Grade 3 Female Officials Surpass 200 for the First Time

For the first time since the introduction of the parental leave system, the number of male public officials taking parental leave last year surpassed that of female public officials. As the proportion of female public officials is once again approaching 50%, the number of grade 3 female public officials, who are considered candidates for senior positions, has exceeded 200 for the first time.

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According to the “2025 Administrative Branch National Public Officials Personnel Statistics” released by the Ministry of Personnel Management on June 11, a total of 19,105 national public officials took parental leave last year. Of these, 10,704 were men, accounting for 56.0% of the total. The number of women taking parental leave was 8,401, meaning that, for the first time since the system was introduced in 1994, more men than women utilized parental leave.

"Dad Parental Leave" Increases Sevenfold Over 10 Years

The number of male public officials taking parental leave has steadily increased over the past 10 years. In 2016, just 1,528 men—18.9% of all parental leave users—took leave. This number rose to 2,652 (29.0%) in 2018, 4,483 (39.0%) in 2020, and 6,524 (46.0%) in 2022. Last year, for the first time, the share exceeded half, reaching over 10,000.

During the same period, the number of female parental leave users also increased from 6,565 in 2016 to 8,401 last year. However, the increase among male users was much greater. Compared to 10 years ago, the number of male parental leave users has grown about sevenfold.

Women Make Up 49% of Public Officials... Greater Entry Into Senior Ranks

The proportion of women among all national public officials was 49.0%. Of the 764,336 administrative branch national public officials last year, 374,748 were women.

While the proportion of female national public officials briefly surpassed 50% in 2017, it fell to 47.9% in statistics after firefighters—who are predominantly male—were incorporated as national public officials in 2020. Since then, the proportion has been gradually increasing again.

Women's advancement into senior positions is also expanding. Last year, there were 210 women among 1,469 members of the senior executive service, accounting for 14.3%. Among grade 3 public officials, considered senior executive candidates, women made up 205 out of 913, or 22.5%. This is the first time the number of grade 3 female public officials has exceeded 200.

The total number of national public officials increased by 872 from the previous year. By occupation, the number of educational public officials declined by 1,449 due to a reduction in the school-age population. In contrast, the number of police and fire officials increased by 905, and the number of general public officials grew by 1,447, mainly in industrial safety supervision, postal services, and taxation.

The number of voluntary resignations was 13,651, a decrease of 3,641 from the previous year. The Ministry of Personnel Management attributes this to a combination of improved working conditions and better compensation, such as increases in base salary and allowances.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.