• Health Policy and Management
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.275-296
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• 2012

Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul National University The national health insurance system in Korea is characterized as relatively high out-of-pocket payments, which are the principal source of catastrophic health expenditure (CHE). The objectives of this study are to estimate the incidence of household CHE and to clarify the characteristics that affect the occurrence and recurrence of household CHE using the Seoul Welfare Panel Survey database for 2008 and 2010. Thresholds to estimate CHE were 10% and 20% of the total household income (T/X), and 25% and 40% of the income excluding food share (T/Y). Determinants of the occurrence and recurrence of CHE at the threshold of T/X=10% were analysed using multiple logistic regression models. Out of the 3,665 households that responded in 2008 survey, households with CHE were 12.07% (T/X${\geq}$10%), 5.34% (T/X${\geq}$20%), 6.84% (T/Y${\geq}$25%), and 4.44% (T/Y${\geq}$40%). Risk factors associated with household CHE included living with a spouse, non-Medicaid beneficiary, householder unemployment, low household income, the number of disabled members, poor subjective health, and the number of chronic diseases. A total of 41.78% of households with CHE in 2008 repeatedly experienced CHE in 2010. Risk factors of CHE recurrence included decreased household income and an increase in chronic diseases over the two time periods, the number of members with disability or chronic diseases, and the presence of cancer patients in 2008. Households with lower socioeconomic and health status had a higher financial burden on health care than do their counterpart households. There is a need to enhance society-wide financial protection from health spending among vulnerable citizens in Seoul, particularly, households with low income, disabled members or cancer patients.

• East Asian Journal of Business Economics (EAJBE)
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• v.1 no.3
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• pp.71-84
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• 2013

Purpose: The South African government is determined in alleviating poverty while encouraging job creation and protecting the disposable incomes of poor households. This article looks at the challenges that are facing the South African Social Security system and argues that the provision of income security is amongst the most practical expressions of a nation's cohesion and values. Research Design, Data and Methodology: There are seven proposals in the Social Security and Retirement Reform and these proposals are based on the following two principal objectives of the government, that is, to ensure a basic standard of living and to prevent destitution in old age or in circumstances of unemployment or incapacity partly or wholly through redistributive measures, and to encourage savings to provide for the replacement of income on retirement, disablement or death through long-term insurance arrangements. Results: This article evaluates these seven proposals, state old age pension, wage subsidy, mandatory participation in a national social security system for all, mandatory participation in private occupational or individual retirement funds, Voluntary additional contributions to occupational or individual retirement funds, reform of the governance and regulation of the retirement funding industry and reform of the tax system. Conclusion: This article concludes that the population size of South Africa has increased significantly to 51, 8 million in 2011 and therefore the time is right for bold new steps in improving income security of the poor and strengthening the fabric of social solidarity that binds all South Africans together.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.58 no.3
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• pp.81-107
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• 2006

This study begins with the assumption that the existing impact analysis studies did not present determinate criteria on which the studies were based. After we criticized the limitations of existing studies, we presented goal-based criteria and evaluated the long-term job-seekers subsidy as a case. This evaluation study is of micro-effect analysis which focuses on the effects on subsidized employees and employers. The Findings are: The subsidized employees were appropriately selected and can be taken as having difficulties in the labour market. The employment effect of the subsidy was significantly positive, though the wage effect was significantly negative. The effect of maintaining of skill measured by occupational mobility was positive, but not significant. The effect of increasing the quantity of employments in the subsidized companies were found significant. It could be proposed from the findings that the wage subsidy for the frail labour force is so effective as the subsidy for the employed labour force and could be boosted.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies
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• v.48 no.3
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• pp.5-28
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• 2017

Using 2006~2015 Korean Welfare Panel Survey data, this study analyzed the poverty reduction effects of social security benefits. The results show that social security benefits have substantial impacts on reducing the poverty gap. National Basic Livelihood Security, public pensions, and Basic Pension have relatively larger poverty reduction effects. Other benefits such as disability benefits, workers' compensation unemployment insurance, and childcare subsidies have much smaller poverty impacts. Two determining factors of the poverty reduction effect are (1)the amount and (2)the poverty reduction efficiency of social security benefits. With the expansion of the social security system in recent years, the poverty reduction efficiency has decreased in general. Due to a greater increase in the amount of benefits, however, the poverty reduction effect has gradually increased. In order to increase the anti-poverty effect of social security, it is important to find ways to improve efficiency while minimizing the disadvantages of the selectivistic welfare benefits.

• Korean Journal of Labor Studies
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.169-193
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• 2017

This study analyzed the determinants that affect employment retention rate in order to diagnose dynamic employment stability in Korea. For this analysis, we constructed multi-level hierarchical data linking Workplace panel survey data and employment insurance job history data. And the determinants were analyzed using a multi-level analysis model suitable for these data. As result of the analysis, it is estimated that the employment stability is very low in Korea due to the widespread existence of the marginal sectors with low wage level and high level of nonstandard employment. In addition, the results of this analysis show that employment structure of Korea occupies considerable area of short-term employment where employment and unemployment are repeated, and overall employment stability is weak. This fact is likely to be a limiting factor for continued growth, as there is limited opportunity for skill development and skills formation at the corporate and individual levels. According to the results of this analysis, it is required to improve the quality of the employment structure for continuous growth and skill formation.

• Journal of vocational education research
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• v.35 no.6
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• pp.39-63
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• 2016

The purpose of this study was to identify the factors affecting the actual employment rate and job retention rate after completion of the training program the unemployed. Survival analysis was conducted by utilizing employment insurance status and subscription data over two years of 840 patients who finally completed a training course from 889 patients in response to survey about the training service quality in 2012. The finding of the study were as follows. First, the highest employment rate (36.8%) after the completion time was within three months, a period more than 50% of the trainees were employed within six months. While employment continued to occur even with the lapse of one year and two years after the completion point, the employment rate over time was found to decrease gradually. Second, the factors affecting employment rate after completing training, appeared teaching competency(-) among training service quality and potential employability(+), which low awareness of teaching capacity and high awareness potential employability increased the possibility of their employment. Third, the highest periods (each 22.0%, 22.3%) of employment loss rate were within three months and within three to six months, and more than 50% of the trainees have lost their unemployment insurance were less than 8.8 months. Fourth, the factors affecting job retention rates after employment, appeared relationship between teachers and students(+), a fellow student relationships(+) among training service quality and training satisfaction(+), which high awareness of teacher-student relationships, fellow student relationships and training satisfaction increased the possibility of their maintaining employment.

• Journal of Labour Economics
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.153-184
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• 2006

This study examines the job changes and the coincidence of job and major In the case of the youth, science and engineering graduates in Korea. The pattern of job changes and the coincidence of job and major get observed in the Unemployment Insurance Database and the Graduate List. This data enables us tracing all job changes in the labor market, and analysing the coincidence of job and major. The average rate of coincidence is not so high, the rate at first job is roughly one third. The youth with coincidence of job and major have earned less income than the youth without coincidence of job and major. But this result is impressive in the lower wage earners, any differences in regard to coincidence is not found in the upper wage earners. The probability of the coincidence of job and major is higher in case of the high wage and the high study attainments. The results suggests that the problem of the science and engineering graduates should be concentrated only on the lower manpower in the scientist and engineer jobs. Korean government have to lessen the number of entry into the science and engineering college and enlarge the number of entry into the science and engineering graduate school. Korean government have to prepare the system that aids establishment where the employee with coincidence of job and major earns more income.

• Journal of Labour Economics
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.99-132
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• 2017

This study examines the employability of participants and employment outcomes in the Korean active labor market policies(ALMPs). The data used in empirical testing is Korea Labor and Income Panel Study 1~15th survey data, participants database in ALMPs and Unemployment Insurance database. The main results are as follows. Level of employability in participants with ALMPs is about 56.3 and that of participants with direct job creation(DJC) programs shows the most low level in sub-type of ALMPs. About 30.8% of all people participating in ALMPs belongs to vulnerable group and 71.5% of participants in DJC programs is in vulnerable group. In DJC programs, the participants with low level of employability are some more likely to be in vulnerable group. As the level of employability in participants with DJC programs increases, their job-search time after moved in labor market reduces and their duration of employment increases. To summarize, one can imply that the DJC programs are effective to transit vulnerable groups in labour market and improve the labor market outcomes by enhancing the employability of participants.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.1295-1301
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• 2015

Background: Cancer imposes a significant economic burden on individuals, families and society. The purpose of this study was to estimate the economic burden of cancer using the healthcare claims and cancer registry data in Korea in 2009. Materials and Methods: The economic burden of cancer was estimated using the prevalence data where patients were identified in the Korean Central Cancer Registry. We estimated the medical, non-medical, morbidity and mortality cost due to lost productivity. Medical costs were calculated using the healthcare claims data obtained from the Korean National Health Insurance (KNHI) Corporation. Non-medical costs included the cost of transportation to visit health providers, costs associated with caregiving for cancer patients, and costs for complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). Data acquired from the Korean National Statistics Office and Ministry of Labor were used to calculate the life expectancy at the time of death, age- and gender-specific wages on average, adjusted for unemployment and labor force participation rate. Sensitivity analysis was performed to derive the current value of foregone future earnings due to premature death, discounted at 3% and 5%. Results: In 2009, estimated total economic cost of cancer amounted to $17.3 billion at a 3% discount rate. Medical care accounted for 28.3% of total costs, followed by non-medical (17.2%), morbidity (24.2%) and mortality (30.3%) costs. Conclusions: Given that the direct medical cost sharply increased over the last decade, we must strive to construct a sustainable health care system that provides better care while lowering the cost. In addition, a comprehensive cancer survivorship policy aimed at lower caregiving cost and higher rate of return to work has become more important than previously considered.

• Informatization Policy
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.22-41
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• 2011

Current socioeconomic condition in South Korea is characterized by growing country with highly unemployment rate. Enhancing service industry, therefore, is one of the important government policy issues. In addition to quantitative growth of service industries, OECD comparisons between countries as shown in the competitiveness of the domestic service industry, followed by a very low-level, enhancing the competitiveness of service industries are also important issues of national policy. In particular, finance, education, insurance industry, such as relatively large enterprises have entered the service industry to remain competitive and comparable, but the case of small service industries, has shown a very low level of competitiveness. Thus, the world's leading technology and IT infrastructure can be applied to small and medium-sized service industry in order to improve productivity, customer satisfaction, and service infrastructure, resulting in improving competitiveness. The purpose of this study is to develop government supporting policy issues by analyzing the current usage of IT, problems and requirement analysis, and critical success factors for applying IT to small and medium-sized service industries. For a survey 2,000 samples are collected from service companies. The results show that IT usage is very important to improve competitiveness in small and medium sized service industry. In addition, customized it solutions are needed to satisfy different characteristics of service industry depends on types of business. Finally, government supporting programs of IT has to be improved. The results would be able to provide directions and guide lines of IT utilization in service industries.