Nov. 22

• ●Legalizing same-sex marriage is still unpopular in South Korea. But does it need to be popular? The Korea Herald
  South Korea made a quiet but meaningful policy change in October.

Nov. 23

• ●Teen's death after 14 ospital rejections exposes ER crisis The Korea Herald
  A South Korean student died in Busan last month after reportedly being turned away by several hospitals over the course of more than an hour, intensifying alarm over the country's worsening shortage of emergency-care specialists.
  
  

• ●From excited to exhausted: Survey finds reality of fatherhood far from initial expectations Korea JoongAng Daily
  For many men in Korea, the fantasy of fun-filled fatherhood is cast aside for a reality of "weekend-only, busy dads"--a gap between the dream and reality revealed in a new survey of fathers raising young children.
  
  

• ●South Korea's 'Not Working' 30s Hit Record High The Chosun Daily
  'Not Working'. The population of people in their 30s living in South Korea who are neither employed nor seeking employment, referred to as 'not working', was recorded at 334,000 last month.

Nov. 24

• ●Gov't eyes addressing regional doctor shortage by expanding traditional medicine services Korea JoongAng Daily
  The government is reviewing ways to expand the role of Korean traditional medicine doctors to help address a shortage of physicians in regional public health care.
  
  

• ●Death of London Bagel Museum worker reignites debate over mandatory work-hour records The Korea Times
  The suspected overwork death of a 26-year-old employee at the popular bakery chain London Bagel Museum has reignited a fierce debate in Korea over whether employers should be required to track work hours.
  
  

• ●6 in 10 parents of twins in S. Korea burdened by child care costs The Korea Herald
  With multiple-birth families increasing rapidly in Korea, 6 in 10 twin parents reported feeling significant financial pressure, prompting renewed calls for stronger government support, a survey showed Monday.
  
  

• ●Government reviews placing doctors of Korean medicine in rural public health centers The Korea Herald
  The government is reviewing wether doctors of Korean medicine can be deployed to help address a shortage of medical staff in rural areas.

Nov. 25

• ●9 in 10 university students use AI for study, 6 in 10 worry it's dulling their thinking: survey The Korea Herald
  Artificial intelligence has already become central to academic life at South Korean universities, used by the overwhelming majority of students for research and writing.
  
  

• ●YouTuber's inability to find care for postpartum hemorrhaging highlights concerns about obstetrics Korea JoongAng Daily
  A woman's account of being turned away from multiple emergency rooms while hemorrhaging after giving birth to twins has renewed concerns that Korea's obstetric system is collapsing as delivery rooms and specialists disappear.
  
  

• ●Korea faces early flu wave as new variant spreads among children Korea JoongAng Daily
  Korea is grappling with one of its earliest flue waves in years as a newly dominant H3N2 sub-variant sweeps through schools and underscores a growing vaccine mismatch, echoing a rapid rise in infections seen in the United States, Japan, Britain and Canada.
  
  

• ●Widespread abuse of five-person labor law leading to overwork and abuse, say advocates Korea JoongAng Daily
  The five-person rule in the Korean law, which exempts owners of businesses with less than five workers from a plethora of legal mandates regarding employee welfare, has not become a major loophole leading to widespread infringement of labor rights, such as in the recent London Bagel Museum incident.

Nov. 26

• ●75% of South Koreans say migrants who pay taxes should get equal access to welfare: survey The Korea Herald
  A majority of South Koreans believe that migrants who pay taxes should be included in the country's social welfare system, according to new national survey data released this week.
  
  

• ●Pohang Birth Rate Rebounds After Nine-Year Decline The Chosun Daily
  Pohang, Gyeongsangbuk-do, is the most populous city among the 22 cities and counties in the province.
  
  

• ●North Gyeongsang to Deploy AI Robots in Childcare The Chosun Daily
  Amid low birth rates being cited as a serious social issue, Statistics Korea delivered encouraging news this year.
  
  

• ●Marriages, births up in September as 'echo-boom' gen turns common marriage age Korea JoongAng Daily
  Marriage and birth rates in Korea rose significantly in September, driven by a demographic shift as the "echo-boom" generation--typically defined as those born between 1990 and 1995--enters popular years for starting families, amrking a notable break from the country's population decline.
  
  

• ●Korea rolls out malpractice insurance support for high-risk surgeons The Korea Herald
  South Korea has launched a new malpractice insurance support program for doctors in essential but high-risk medical fields, the Health Ministry said Wednesday, aiming to build a stronger safety net for both physicians and patients in the event of medical accidents.
  
  

• ●Population mobility hits 51-year low in October: data The Korea Times
  The number of Koreans relocating to new homes fell to the lowest level in 51 years for any October, partly due to the Chuseok holiday and sluggish housing transactions, data showed Wednesday.
  
  

• ●Korea sees largest increase in births in 18 years The Korea Herald
  The number of babies born between January and September surpassed 190,000, marking the largest year-on-year increase in 18 years, government data showed Wednesday.

Nov. 27

• ●4 in 10 Koreans say they are lonely The Korea Herald
  A new government survey shows that 4 in 10 South Koreans frequently feel lonely.
  
  

• ●Middle-Aged Male Supervisors Lead Workplace Human Rights Violations The Chosun Daily
  A survey by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) revealed that middle-aged male supervisors in their 50s are the primary perpetrators of human rights violations in South Korean society.
  
  

• ●Government Insures Essential Medical Accidents Up to 1.5 Billion Won The Chosun Daily
  A university hospital in Gyeonggi Province was sued for approximately 2.4 billion Korean won in damages by Ms. A, who gave birth at the hospital in 2021.
  
  

• ●Youth job hunt nears 2 years, longer outside Seoul The Korea Herald
  Fresh university graduates outside the Greater Seoul region, which includes Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, take an average of three months longer to secure their first job compared to their counterparts in the capital region, according to a new study published Thursday.
  
  

• ●Employment door keeps closing on those without higher education degrees Korea JoongAng Daily
  High school graduates are losing ground in Korea's largest companies as hiring tightens, nonpermanent contracts become more prevalent and more vocational students choose to further their education over immediate employment.
  
  

• ●State auditor says med school quota increase based on 'logical inconsistency' Korea JoongAng Daily
  The state audit agency on Thursday released findings that the previous Yoon Suk Yeol administration's decision to increase the medical school enrollment quota by 2,000 seats lacked proper grounds.
  
  

• ●'No one to turn to': Number of 'solitary deaths' rose 7.2% in 2024 Korea JoongAng Daily
  A man in his 50s who lived alone in a multi-unit house in Seoul was found dead in May last year when his landlord visited to collect overdue rent.

Nov. 28

• ●Creating jobs, changing perceptions: A Chinese professional's insights on Korea's social sector Korea JoongAng Daily
  Yuhan Sun, who majored in Japanese at Chonnam National University in South Jeolla Province, initially planned to move to Japan to start her career after receiving several job offers.
  
  

• ●Audit Flags Flaws in Yoon's 2,000 Medical School Expansion Plan The Chosun Daily
  The Board of Audit and Inspection announced on the 27th that the Yoon Suk-yeol government's decision to increase medical school enrollment by 2,000 students was based on "estimates lacking logical consistency."