Welfare Reforms, Labour Markets and Inter-Firm Relations in South Korea since 1997: An Inter-Institutional Approach

Abstract

This study explores the paradoxical consequences of social welfare reforms in South Korea since the 1997 financial crisis. Despite efforts to implement a comprehensive social insurance system (SIS), the South Korean government did not succeed in providing access to people who qualified for aid. This study examines the dynamics of the implementation of the SIS in relation to the policy domains of labour markets and inter-firm relations, rather than a narrow focus on social welfare policies. This study shows how the implementation of the SIS becomes self-eroding as a result of various actors' exploitation of tensions between the SIS and other institutional domains.