South Korea's Childcare Service Faces Long Waits, High Costs Amid Caregiver Shortage

South Korea's "Child Care Service," a government-backed program offering in-home care for children up to age 12, is struggling with significant delays and user-reported cost burdens. A recent survey highlighted that 95.1% of users utilize the service regularly, averaging 4.6 times a week for over 16 hours. However, the wait to access this support is a major pain point, with 31.7% of families waiting between one week and one month, and 20.4% waiting one to three months.

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The support, including expanded subsidies for usage costs, has greatly increased demand, but supply has not kept pace. We believe improving the treatment of caregivers is urgent. We have increased the care allowance this year and introduced a new allowance for infant care. We are increasing the allowance every year.

The "Child Care Service" received high marks for the competence and quality of its caregivers (3.8 out of 5), but scored poorly on "waiting period for service linkage" at 2.9 out of 5. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family acknowledged that increased demand, driven by expanded subsidies, has outpaced the supply of caregivers. The average waiting time for service connection was 39.4 days last year, with the service linkage rate at 86.9%.

Families expressed a strong need for "expansion of caregiver training to resolve waiting times" (4.2 out of 5) and "increase in government subsidies for usage costs" (4.1 out of 5). The average monthly cost for users is 357,000 won. Caregivers themselves face challenges, with many earning around the minimum wage. The average age of caregivers is nearly 60, with over half being 60 or older. They work an average of 118.8 hours per month, earning approximately 1.6 million won. Their primary concerns include poor treatment beyond salary, low wages, and job insecurity.

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Expansion of caregiver training to resolve waiting times

In response, the ministry announced plans to increase caregiver subsidies this year, introduce a new subsidy for infant care, and continue annual increases. They are also exploring tax benefits for households with greater childcare burdens, such as dual-income, single-parent, or multi-child families. The ministry aims to strengthen collaboration with local governments to boost the supply of caregivers.

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Increase in government subsidies for usage costs