'Is This the Same Chuseok?'... SMEs Pay 660,000 Won vs Lawmakers Receive 4.4 Million Won

This Year's Holiday Bonus for National Assembly Members: 4,396,560 Won
Chuseok Bonus Plans in SMEs Decrease Every Year

During this year's Chuseok holiday, members of the National Assembly are receiving holiday bonuses amounting to approximately 4.4 million won. In contrast, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are offering a fixed average of 665,000 won as Chuseok bonuses for their employees, highlighting a significant disparity. The Chuseok holiday bonus for legislators has increased by about 150,000 won compared to last year, while SMEs plan to pay even smaller bonuses than before.

National Assembly plenary session. Photo by Dongju Yoon, The Asia Business Daily

According to the National Assembly and other sources on September 26, the Chuseok holiday bonus for each lawmaker this year stands at 4,396,560 won. Legislators receive 60% of their standard monthly allowance (7,327,600 won) as bonuses for each of the two major holidays, Lunar New Year and Chuseok.

This means that annual holiday bonuses alone total roughly 8.8 million won per legislator. As the annual salary for National Assembly members has increased to 160.93 million won in 2026, up by 4.03 million won from the previous year, the holiday bonus also rose by approximately 300,000 won compared to last year.

This amount far exceeds the typical income level for the average worker. When compared to the nation’s average monthly wage for salaried employees—3.75 million won, according to the Ministry of Data and Statistics—lawmakers receive about 650,000 won more in holiday bonuses for a single holiday than the monthly income of a regular worker.

In contrast, Chuseok bonuses at SMEs are considerably lower. According to the "2026 SME Chuseok Funding Demand Survey" conducted by the Korea Federation of SMEs among 1,000 companies from September 1 to 7, only 45.1% of companies planned to pay Chuseok bonuses this year. This represents a sharp decline compared to the previous year, when a survey by Saramin showed that 56.9% of 950 companies had plans to pay such bonuses.

Photo for article illustration purposes only, not related to specific content. Getty Images Bank

Among companies planning to pay fixed Chuseok bonuses, the average payment amount was found to be 665,000 won. This average does not represent all workers, but rather the mean among SMEs that chose to pay a fixed-sum bonus out of those with bonus plans.

The financial situation of companies also appears to have worsened compared to last year. Of the companies surveyed, 40.0% said their Chuseok cash flow situation had deteriorated compared to the previous year. In contrast, only 12.9% responded that their financial situation had improved. By sector, 47.8% of manufacturing firms reported difficulties with cash flow, higher than the 32.2% reported among non-manufacturing firms.

Amidst these circumstances, some are calling for reforms to the holiday bonus system. While holiday bonuses for lawmakers are not performance-based but rather a form of fixed salary defined by law and budget allocation, differentiating them from private-sector bonuses, there is a need to narrow the gap between public perception and institutional practice.

An official from the political sphere commented, "Every year, the gap in ‘holiday cash gifts’ between lawmakers and ordinary workers becomes a repeated subject of public debate as the holidays approach," adding, "This reflects the high level of public interest in lawmakers’ salaries and allowances."

The official further stated, "Beyond the size of the holiday bonus, it is essential to provide sufficient explanation to the public on how the salary structure and payment standards for lawmakers are determined, so that these practices can be properly understood and justified."

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