New and old social risks in Korean social policy: the case of the National Pension Scheme

This is a study of old and new social risks in Korean social policy, in relation to the National Pension Scheme (NPS). It provides a comprehensive overview of the Korean pension structure and the emergence of new social risk groups. Based on the Korean Labour and Income Panel Study undertaken over eleven years and using bivariate and multivariate analysis, this thesis examines the effectiveness of the NPS and its reforms in protecting new social risk groups.

The analytical framework of this thesis is based on the New Social Risk theory. Its limitation in explaining developing welfare states like Korea is also highlighted. Over the past two decades, the NPS has undergone dramatic financial cuts as its coverage expands rapidly. Given Korea’s aging population, the reliance on such public schemes will further increase, which will have a profound impact particularly, on those with low income. Societal and economic changes in the Korean society, as a result of de-industrialisation, have given rise to new social risks groups that differ from those that predominate in the post-war welfare era. These new groups are vulnerable because they cannot afford to contribute to their pension even during their working life with the likelihood that they will have little or no benefit from the NPS when they retire. They tend to be the atypical contract holders and workers of small-scale enterprises without unions. Contrary to expectation, women with care responsibility and young workers are less vulnerable.