"I Would Want My Daughter to Work Here": Amorepacific Claims First-Ever Top Spot Among Top 100 Firms for Executive-Level Advancement [2026 Gender Equality Index]

Review of the Top 100 Companies' Performance

Amorepacific Tops the List with a Total Score of 60.25 in Its First Year

Kakao Ranks Second, Naver and CJ ENM Share Third Place

Workplace Changes Drive Shifts in Birth Rates

Editor's Note
Numbers gain power the moment they are made public. Since parental leave usage rates have been disclosed starting last year, the number of companies with single-digit male usage rates has nearly halved in a single year. Behind this year's rebound in the total fertility rate to the 0.9 range for the first time in seven years lies such transformation in the workplace. Now in its 11th year, the 'Asia Gender Equality Index' analyzes data from 137 companies and field perspectives to evaluate both the progress and limitations of our workplaces. Transparent data is changing the workplace, and these changes are becoming the solution to low birth rates. The Asia Gender Equality Index aims to be both a measure of and a driving force behind that change.

Amorepacific ranked first in the 'Asia Gender Equality Index,' which evaluated the top 100 Korean companies. Scoring a total of 60.25 points, Amorepacific secured the top position as soon as it was newly included in this year's evaluation. Kakao, which ranked first last year, came in second with 60.0 points, while Naver and CJ ENM were tied for third place with 58 points each. On the other hand, the energy company E1 ranked last with a total score of 20.25 points.

Amorepacific headquarters located at 100 Hangang-daero, Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Amorepacific

Amorepacific Excels in Nurturing and Work-Life Balance... All Three New Entrants Make Top 10

Amorepacific received strong and balanced scores in employment (maximum 30 points), compensation (maximum 20 points), nurturing (maximum 20 points), work-life balance (maximum 20 points), and other categories (maximum 10 points). In the nurturing category alone, Amorepacific ranked first overall with 14 points. According to last year’s business report, a woman served as an internal director, three out of six outside directors were women, and the proportion of women among non-registered executives reached 26.5%, placing the company at the top. The scores reveal that female talent at Amorepacific can advance continuously from recruitment to executive positions.

In the work-life balance category, Amorepacific ranked second with 16.75 points. The overall parental leave usage rate increased for four consecutive years, from 67% in 2022 to 78% last year. The male usage rate stood at 31% last year, which is more than double the 100-company average of 14.6%. During the same period, the female usage rate was 96%, meaning virtually all eligible women took parental leave. Flexible work arrangements were used by 86% of employees. Additionally, Amorepacific scored 14.5 points in employment, 13 points in compensation, and 2 points in the other category. An Amorepacific official stated, "Amorepacific continues to work towards creating a work environment where everyone can demonstrate and develop their abilities regardless of gender, age, or individual background," adding, "Rather than simply expanding programs for certain members, we are operating our HR and welfare policies to encompass fair growth opportunities and assessments, work-life balance, diversity and inclusion, and a culture of mutual respect."

Although Kakao, the top-ranked company last year, slipped to second place by just 0.25 points, a closer look reveals that it still set the benchmark for working methods among the top 100 companies. Its flexible work system usage rate was 196.5% (including multiple uses), the highest among all surveyed companies. This is because almost all employees freely use flexible work hours and remote work arrangements. Essentially, the entire company is able to structure work in terms of time and location for themselves, which distinctly sets it apart from other companies where flexible work is limited to certain departments.

Kakao also excelled in parental leave, with an overall usage rate of 45.1%, well above the 29% average for the top 100 companies. Among men, the usage rate soared from 12.3% in 2024 to 19.3% last year—an increase of 7 percentage points in just one year. On the board of directors, three out of five external directors (60%) were women, placing Kakao among the top-tier companies. A Kakao representative said, "We have expanded basic maternity and miscarriage leave, as well as prenatal check-up leave, to employees and their spouses," adding, "We also offer paid family care leave, which can be used for childcare, illness, old age, or accident care, among other reasons."

This year’s survey highlighted the strong performance of newly included companies. Alongside Amorepacific, SK Innovation (ranked 8th, 54.5 points) and Krafton (ranked 10th, 53.5 points) both entered the top 10. For instance, Krafton had the highest proportion of female outside directors among surveyed companies, with four out of five (80%).

Male-Dominated Industries at the Bottom... Some Companies Overcome the Odds

The differences by industry between top and bottom performers were clear again this year. The leading ranks were filled by companies in beauty, IT, telecommunications, and retail—such as Samsung Biologics (5th, 55.25 points), KT and LG Household & Health Care (tied for 6th, 55 points), LG Uplus (9th, 54 points), and Hyundai Glovis (11th, 52 points). KT recorded the largest increase among all companies by raising its proportion of full-time female employees by 7.8 percentage points over five years, while Hyundai Glovis took first place overall in the employment category with 21 points.

Conversely, the bottom ranks below 90th place were dominated by so-called 'male-dominated' industries such as steel (Hyundai Steel, Dongkuk Steel, KG Steel, Taihan Cable), construction (Hyundai Engineering & Construction, Kolon Global), automotive and parts (KG Mobility, HL Mando), heavy industry (Hyosung Heavy Industries), trading (Hyundai Corporation), and energy (E1). These companies shared the characteristics of low proportions of full-time female employees and low rates of parental leave and flexible work usage among women.

However, some companies transcended their industry limits. Poongsan, a defense and materials manufacturer, climbed 19 places from last year to reach 49th, thanks to the highest overall score of 19 points in compensation. The average salary for women at Poongsan was 97.1% of the male average, making it the only company among the top 100 where women's pay exceeded 95% of men's. Furthermore, women's average years of service surpassed that of men. Lotte Chemical maintained its 15th place overall, serving as a model in the chemical industry, with a male parental leave usage rate of 65%.

The company with the largest drop in ranking was CJ Freshway, plunging 52 spots from 8th last year to 60th this year. Despite having the highest proportion of full-time female employees (69.6%) among the top 100 companies, the company scored only 3 points in the nurturing category and 6.5 points in the work-life balance category. The weak performance in the nurturing category was evident in executive appointments: among nine non-registered executives, none were women, and there has not been a single female internal director in the past five years. This demonstrates that simply having a large proportion of women employees does not automatically result in gender equality. Other companies with large declines included Coway (10th to 47th), SK Telecom (12th to 40th), and Korean Air (20th to 47th).

Comparison Across Five Major Groups... Hyundai Motor Group Surges, LG Remains Steady

By business group, Hyundai Motor Group posted the greatest improvement. Hyundai Motor Company jumped from 47th to 18th—the largest leap among the top 100 companies. For the first time ever, a woman was appointed as an internal director, and three out of seven outside directors were women, driving up the company's ranking. Other group affiliates also climbed: Hyundai Glovis (from 20th to 11th), Kia (from 51st to 41st), Hyundai Rotem (from 80th to 62nd), and Hyundai Mobis (from 37th to 33rd). However, the construction and steel affiliates—Hyundai Engineering & Construction (from 73rd to 92nd) and Hyundai Steel (from 79th to 95th)—fell towards the bottom, revealing disparities within the group.

Among Samsung Group companies, Samsung Biologics retained its top-tier position at 5th for the second consecutive year. Samsung Electro-Mechanics (from 30th to 14th), SAMSUNG E&A (from 41st to 20th), and Samsung Heavy Industries (from 86th to 68th) also climbed the rankings. Although Samsung Electronics dropped from 9th to 13th, it maintained strong scores across all categories.

For the LG Group, LG Household & Health Care (6th) and LG Uplus (from 10th to 9th) helped secure its steady position near the top, while LG Electronics (from 31st to 24th) and LG Chem (from 32nd to 25th) placed in the upper-middle range. However, LG Energy Solution slid from 19th to 37th.

SK Group saw mixed results among its affiliates. New entrant SK Innovation ranked 8th, and SK hynix rose from 25th to 22nd. In contrast, SK Telecom—whose ranking had surged last year—fell from 12th to 40th due to weaker performance in the compensation category.

For Lotte Group, Lotte Chemical (from 16th to 15th) and Lotte Rental (from 23rd to 17th) remained in the upper ranks, while the mandatory implementation of male parental leave boosted the group's performance in the work-life balance category across the board.

Reference image on childbirth, childcare, and career-interrupted women. The Asia Business Daily

Building Daycare Centers and Supporting Career-Interrupted Women... Changes at Work Impact Birth Rates

Meaningful changes are accumulating as companies work to establish gender-equal systems and foster work-family balance. In this survey, 82% of the top 100 companies operated workplace daycare centers (in-house, joint, or consigned), and 85% had leadership development programs for women. Meanwhile, 29% participated in or operated their own programs to support 'career-interrupted women,' up 6 percentage points from 23% last year.

It is noteworthy that these changes are connected to the birth rate. In a survey released by the Korean Women's Development Institute in December last year, women's intentions to give birth depended not on values but on their outlook regarding whether they could continue working after childbirth. Those who believed it was feasible to remain in the workforce had a much higher intention to have children, while those who wished to continue working but saw it as difficult reported the lowest intention. This suggests that creating workplaces where women do not have to quit their jobs could become a catalyst for overcoming low birth rates.

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