• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.39-75
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• 2009

The development of the biomedical science and technology has extended an argument about a status in constitutional law of unborn human life and a protection of the potential human life to that of an embryo and a gamete beyond a fetus. This argument has been focused on whether we should provide unborn or potential human life with human dignity and the right to life that are guaranteed by the constitutional law altogether or separately. If the right to life is given to unborn or potential human life, on what grounds can we restrict this right. Those who argue for the unity of the right to life with human dignity and the inseparability of those two claims that the right to life in itself should be guaranteed absolutely. According to the constitutional law, however, any constitutional right of the human person within the protection of essential part of the right can be compared with each other and restricted with some valid reasons from the legal perspective. This measure is unavoidable in reality because one right can come into conflict with another right frequently. Since fetus and embryo are in a process of developing into the human person, it is difficult to think that they are the same with the human person. For that reason, it is hard to consider that the right to life of fetus or embryo is the same with that of the human person. However, since a fetus has a special status as a potential human person, and an embryo also has a special value as a potential fetus upon an implantation, the right to life of fetus or embryo should be judged differently according to the stage of their development. A study on a constitutional status and protection of a fetus and an embryo is essential because unborn or potential human life is the origin of human person. Therefore, we have to make much account of their right to life and seek the legal respect for their inherent value.

• Korean Journal of Medical Ethics
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.301-315
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• 2018

Women have been entrusted with responsibility for pregnancy, childbirth, and nurturing by means of socially imposed 'maternity' along with their physical characteristics. Abortion too involves the bodies of women, and women are the ones most affected by it. However, women do not yet have the right of self-determination over their bodies. In the "pro-choice versus pro-life" abortion debate in South Korea, women's self-determination is often treated with less significance than the alleged "respect for life." Moreover, as Korea's declining fertility rate has become a serious social problem, women's perspectives on the issue of abortion have been sidelined. Yet even in this context, there is a double standard between the treatment of disabled and able-bodied women. The purpose of this study is to examine the issue of self-determination, especially for women with disabilities, from the perspective of a capability approach. The following three recommendations are proposed: (a) that the various contextual variables of disabled women are included in the concept of self-determination; (b) that a solid relationship between individuals and communities is established in order to ensure the realization of the right of self-determination for disabled women; and (c) that the discourse of "reproduction rights" (i.e. comprehensive rights of women with disabilities) be expanded.

• Journal of Venture Innovation
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• v.5 no.3
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• pp.57-70
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• 2022

In modern industrial capitalism, the relationship between the provision of work and the receipt of wages has become an important principle governing society. According to the labor contract, the wages provided by entrusting the right to dispose of one's labor to the employer are directly compensated, and human life should be guaranteed and reproduced with proper rest. The establishment of labor relations under free contracts represents a problem in protecting workers, and accordingly, the maximum of working hours is set as a minimum right for workers, and the standard for minimum rest is set and assigned. The reduction of working hours is very important in terms of the quality of life of workers, but it is also an important issue in efficient corporate activities. As of 2020, Korea has 1,908 hours of annual working hours, the third lowest among OECD 37 countries in the happiness index surveyed by the Sustainable Development Solution Network(SDSN), an agency under the United Nations. Accordingly, the necessity of reducing working hours has been recognized, and the maximum working hours per week has been limited to 52 hours since 2018. In this situation, various working hours are legally excluded as a way to maintain the company's value-added creation and meet the diverse needs of workers, and Korea's Labor Standards Act restricts flexible working hours within three months, flexible working hours exceeding three months, selective working hours, and extended working hours. However, in the discussion on the application of the revised flexible working hours system in 2021 and the expansion of the settlement unit period recently discussed, there is a problem with the flexible working hours system, which needs to be improved. Therefore, this paper aims to examine the problems of the flexible working hours system and improvement measures. The flexible working hours system is a system that does not violate working hours even if the legal working hours are exceeded on a specific day or week according to a predetermined standard, and does not have to pay additional wages for excessive overtime work. It is mainly useful as a form of shift work in manufacturing, sales service, continuous business or electricity, gas, water, and transportation for long-term operations. It is also used as a way to shorten working hours, such as expanding holidays through short working days. However, if the settlement unit period is expanded, it is disadvantageous to workers as the additional wages that workers can receive will not be received. Therefore, First, in order to expand the settlement unit period currently under discussion, additional wages should be paid for the period expanded from the current standard. Second, it is necessary to improve the application of the flexible working hours system to individual workers to have sufficient consultation with individual workers in a written agreement with the worker representative, Third, clarify the allowable time for extended work during the settlement unit period, and Fourth, limit the daily working hours or apply to continuous rest. In addition, since the written agreement of the worker representative is an important issue in the application of the flexible working hours system, it is necessary to secure the representation of the worker representative.