The current Act prescribes provisions to promote the use of annual paid leaves and encourage the use of leave, but they have not been highly effective as evidenced by the fact that only 53 percent of leave was used in 2016.

Where an employer has taken measures to encourage workers to use their annual paid leaves but the workers do not take leave, the employer shall be exempt from the obligation to provide monetary compensation for the unused leave.

With excessive workloads and lack of substitute workers already making it difficult for workers to use their annual leave, if measures to promote the use of annual paid leave is to be taken only as a formality, such system would be misued as grounds on which to avoid paying the unused annual paid leave allowance, rather than benefitting workers.

Accordingly, the Amendment prohibits disadvantageous actions taken against workers for requesting or using annual paid leave, requires an employer to prepare an annual paid leave ledger and to take measures to promote the use of annual paid leave, and prescribes other measures to increase the use of annual paid leave by workers (Article 60, paragraph 8, Article 60-2 newly inserted, Article 61, Article 110, Article 116).

Employers shall not dismiss, discipline, or take any other disadvantageous action against a worker for requesting or using annual paid leave (Article 60).
Employers shall keep an annual paid leave ledger for each workplace, record such matters as the number of days of annual paid leave granted to and used by each worker, and submit the annual paid leave ledger to the Minister of Employment and Labor within one month after the end of each year (Article 60-2).