1) Firstly, if you haven't already started, begin documenting and keeping a diary or notes about your arrival at work and departure from work. It is advisable to take photos every day to show your workspace before starting work and after finishing work. Also, keeping written records with times will help you not to forget important information and to correctly calculate your wages in the future. Record conversations on a voice recorder.
Correspondence with HR should preferably be screenshotted and kept. And find evidence (other correspondence) where you were promised a different salary.
2) Of course, HR asked you to be understanding, this is up to your discretion, but I advise you to demand to be issued an employment contract faster (screenshot correspondence and requests again).
According to Korean law:
Article 17 of the ROK Labor Standards Act (근로기준법) obliges the employer, upon concluding an employment contract, to state the terms and conditions of employment in writing and provide this document to the employee; the list of mandatory items is detailed in Article 8 of the Enforcement Decree to the Act (시행령). Failure to issue it carries a fine of up to 5 million won.
In practice, the Ministry of Employment and Labor clarifies: the contract must be drawn up before the start of work or, at the very least, on the day of commencement of work (without delay).
This means you have every right to file a complaint with the Ministry of Labor that the employer is not issuing you a contract.
3) The calculation of your salary depends on the type of your contract, hours worked, etc.
According to Korean law:
Paragraph 2 of Article 48 of the Labor Standards Act (근로기준법) states that when paying wages, the employer is obliged to provide the employee with a pay slip in writing (including electronic documents), which indicates the components of the wages, the methods of calculation, and other information established by presidential decree.
(If the payday is the 25th, then on the 25th you must receive a document called a "pay slip" (임금명세서). The "pay slip" details the components of your salary.)
When you receive this pay slip and contract, and send it to us, we will be able to help you verify if everything was paid or stated correctly.
4) If you are underpaid according to the agreement, this is called "Wage Arrears / 임금체불" – it is the non-payment or delay by the employer of wages or other payments that should be paid to employees in exchange for their labor.
The absence of an employment contract does not deprive the employee of their employment status. In such cases, employees can provide documents such as regular salary payment dates and bank statements as proof of arrears. (Once again, my advice: document and collect evidence in advance)
Employees can resolve wage arrears issues by reaching an agreement with the employer before going to court or filing a complaint. This means you can calmly ask for your wages to be recalculated if you believe you have been underpaid at work.
For example, an employer can clearly state a deadline for paying overdue wages to employees and then pay them in accordance with the agreement. This can strengthen mutual trust between employer and employee and prevent unnecessary legal disputes.
In other words, employees do not necessarily have to resort to civil or criminal measures to resolve wage arrears.
If consultations between the parties are not successful, then you can consider filing a complaint or a lawsuit.
2025-10-17 14:49
