Wage increase averaged 5 percent in 2008: ministry

SEOUL, Jan. 7 (Yonhap) -- South Korean businesses and unions agreed on a near-5
percent wage increase on average in 2008, marking a slight increase from the
previous year, according to the government Wednesday.

A recent survey of 6,745 companies with over 100 employees showed that their
management and unions agreed on a 4.9 percent wage increase on average last year,
up from a 4.8 percent hike in 2007, the Ministry of Labor said.
The retail industry saw the largest increase in payment increase with 6 percent,
followed by manufacturing and media-related industries, with 5.4 percent and 4.4
percent, respectively.
The rate of wage deal settlements reached 84 percent, up 7.5 percentage point
from 2007, while the number of companies agreeing on cooperative labor relations
more than tripled to 2,678, the ministry said.
odissy@yna.co.kr
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