Fired in Korea without 30 days' notice: what am I owed?

If your employer ends your job, Korean law requires a warning at least 30 days ahead. Without that warning, the employer must pay you at least 30 days of ordinary wage instead (해고예고수당). This money is owed even when the employer had a good reason to let you go, and it is owed at small workplaces too. Notice pay does not make a dismissal fair, though: whether the firing itself was lawful is judged on its own, on a different timetable.

Who has the right to notice?

Almost every employee who has worked continuously for 3 months or more. Nationality and visa type do not change this. The law lists only three cases where notice and notice pay can be skipped:

"You made a mistake on the line" or "your Korean is not good enough" does not fit any of these.

How much is notice pay?

Thirty days of ordinary wage (통상임금), meaning the set pay attached to your contracted hours, leaving out any overtime you happened to work. It is usually worked out as your hourly ordinary wage x your daily contract hours x 30.

A worked example with an invented wage: suppose your fixed monthly pay is 2,508,000 won for a standard 209-hour month. The hourly rate is 12,000 won. With an 8-hour contract day, one day is 96,000 won, so 30 days come to 2,880,000 won. That is more than one month's salary, because 30 calendar days of 8 hours is more than the hours in a normal pay month.

Notice pay counts as a wage-type debt and is normally settled on your way out, together with your last salary and any severance.

What if I got some notice, but less than 30 days?

The rule asks for 30 days. The common reading of it, which the labor ministry also follows, is that short notice counts as no notice, so the full 30 days of pay is owed rather than only the missing days. Write down the exact date and time you were told, and by whom.

If you were given proper notice, you work and are paid as normal during those 30 days. The employer cannot cut your pay because you are leaving.

Does the notice have to be in writing?

Where the business has at least 5 employees, yes: a dismissal that does not state on paper why and from which day it applies has no legal effect. A text message or messenger chat can count as writing if it clearly states both, but a phone call does not. One written notice can serve as both the 30-day warning and the written dismissal notice, if it states why and from which day.

If your notice is in Korean only, you are still bound by its dates. Have it translated at once, so you know exactly which reason was given; that reason is what the employer will have to defend later.

Was the dismissal itself fair?

Notice is only about timing. A separate rule requires a just reason (정당한 이유) for any dismissal. A dismissal for business reasons has extra requirements: real urgent need, effort to avoid dismissals and fair selection. If you think the reason is weak, an application for a remedy (구제신청) has to reach a labor relations commission (지방노동위원회) no later than 3 months after the dismissal date.

Two points matter for foreign workers in particular:

• Returning is not required. If the commission finds the dismissal unfair and you would rather not return, it can order the employer to pay at least what you would have earned for the months you lost, instead of reinstatement.
• A contract that has since expired does not end the case. Even if your fixed term, or the employment period allowed on your E-9 visa, ran out while the case was pending, the commission can still decide it and order that pay.

If the employer ignores a remedy order, the commission can impose a charge (이행강제금) as high as 30 million won each time, up to twice a year for two years.

How does dismissal affect my E-9 visa?

When an employer ends the contract, you may ask the job center (고용센터) for a workplace change, and the 1-month clock for that application starts from the day the contract ends. So the date on your notice matters twice: it fixes your notice pay and starts your job search deadline.

Watch what the employer reports to that center. If the record says you quit or left without permission instead of being dismissed, correct it quickly with your written notice. And refuse any document stating that you resigned "for personal reasons" just to get away faster; it can wipe out your notice pay and weaken an unfair dismissal claim.

How do I collect notice pay?

1. Keep the written notice, or the message, with its date. 2. Ask the employer in writing for 30 days of ordinary wage, stating your hourly rate. 3. If it is missing from your final wages, list it in the complaint (진정) you lodge with the local labor office (지방고용노동청).

Skipping notice is also an offence for the employer, punishable by imprisonment for as long as 2 years or a fine reaching 20 million won.

Next step

Put three dates side by side: your first day of work, the day you were told, and the last day you worked. Together they show whether notice pay is owed and how much time remains for a remedy application. Consultations are paid; when you contact us, a staff member will call you back and explain the fee.

법무법인 대한중앙
1533-7377

Rules applied

Labor Standards Act (근로기준법) Article 26 (30 days' notice or 30 days of ordinary wage; exceptions for under 3 months, inability to continue the business, deliberate serious damage), Article 23(1) (just reason), Article 24 (dismissal for business reasons), Article 27 (written reason and date; notice in writing serves as both), Article 28 (remedy application within 3 months), Article 30(3) and (4) (money instead of reinstatement; order still possible after the contract term ends), Article 33 (charge of up to 30 million won, up to twice a year for 2 years), Article 110 (penalty for violating Article 26), Article 11 (5 or more workers). Act on the Employment of Foreign Workers (외국인근로자의 고용 등에 관한 법률) Article 25(1)1 and (3) (workplace change after termination; 1-month deadline).

This is general information, not legal advice. Every case is different.