Kim Dong-ho

The author is the editor ofeconomic news at the JoongAng Ilbo.

South Korea’s Generation MZ — those in their 20s and 30s — live in a world different from that of the older generation. Their country has become the 10th largest economy in the world. But they cannot find a decent job or home. For the first time in Korean history, the younger generation would become poorer than their parents’ generation when they reach their age.

Their tough life owes largely to the radical policies of the liberal governments. The Roh Moo-hyun government enacted a law in July 2007 to protect the so-called irregular workers who have to renew their contract every two years and who receive less pay than their full-time counterparts while doing the same job.

The purpose of the law was understandable to some extent. To discourage employers from hiring employees on a irregular basis, the law mandated them to put them on a permanent payroll after two years. But the law came to fixate the young workers to the “irregular” label, as companies began to lay off irregular employees every two years. Enthusiastic and smart recruits quietly exited after their two-year term expired. The brief work of young recruits has become commonplace in worksites and settings in Korean movies and dramas.

HR staff’s primary role has become to sack the irregular workers when their two-year time is up. Young people are forced to migrate from one irregular work to another. Due to job insecurity, they cannot be...

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