Ministry of National Defense Republic of Korea

Regarding soldiers' requests for a leave of absence to take care of their second or subsequent child, the whole period of child care leave has a maximum of three years per child and is included in the calculation of the minimum military service period for promotional considerations.

The Defense Ministry announced that a revised bill for the Military Personnel Management Act, reflecting this change, was passed at a cabinet meeting on January 9 and is scheduled to come into effect immediately following its proclamation in the middle of this month.

The military child care leave can be taken for the purpose of nurturing children under the age of eight, or those in their second year of elementary school, or during female military personnels' pregnancy and delivery. The period is less than three years for each child.

To calculate the minimum military service period to be served to be eligible for promotion, in the past, a maximum of one year of child care leave and three years of child care leave was included for a soldier’s first and second child, and their third or subsequent child individually, while this revision has enabled full inclusion of the three-year child care leave to start from their second or subsequent child.

Military personnel should serve in an appropriate rank for a fixed period to be promoted into a higher rank. As for captains and major ranking officers most likely to be married with children, the minimum service period for promotion is six years and five years individually. The extended child care leave period reflected in the minimum service period should prove helpful to young professional soldiers trying to balance work and family life.

The defense ministry's active support for child care leave and positive awareness spreading within the military has been bringing about a steady increase in the number of military personnel on child care leave: up from 1165 soldiers in 2013 to 1761 soldiers last year.

Male military personnel child care leave applications, in particular, accounting for a mere 15% in the past, represented 35% by 2017.

By Chul-Hwan, Kim < droid001@dema.mil.kr >

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