There are a variety of factors that can be attributed to South Korea’s gender income gap, namely the nation’s highly misogynistic culture which derives from a society founded on patriarchal norms. Although Korean women have generally achieved educational equality in recent years, there still persists the social conception that the female should remain in the house while the man should provide the main source of income. Even when families gather to celebrate major national holidays such as Chuseok and the Lunar New Year, it is not uncommon to find the males lounging on the sofa watching TV while the females are expected to spend all morning in the kitchen preparing a plentiful feast.
Discrimination is most felt in the workplace due to pregnancy or maternity leaves as they ultimately delay the promotion of female workers, resulting in significant disparities between the pay grades of men and women. More often than not, women are pressured into resigning from their jobs subsequent to marriage and pregnancy due to familial commitments as a housewife. Despite that measures are being taken to enhance support systems for mothers in the workforce, such as President Moon Jae-in’s pledge to double the maternity leave pay earlier this year, many argue that the enactment of an anti-discrimination act is necessary to enforce any drastic change towards gender equality in the professional climate of Korea.