Korean financial-sector unions and employers have reached a tentative industry-wide labor agreement that would raise wages and shorten bank opening hours.
The agreement calls for total wages to rise 3.0 percent. It also shifts the standard bank opening time from 9 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. beginning next April, reducing customer-facing business hours by 30 minutes.
The banking union described the change as the first such reduction in operating hours since the founding of the country. The talks had run for about five months since negotiations began in April.
For customers, the most visible effect would be the later morning opening. The agreement does not simply concern employee schedules; it changes when people can enter branches for services that still require an in-person visit.
Because the deal is tentative, implementation still depends on completion of the labor process and how individual institutions apply the new schedule. Banks will also need to communicate the change clearly before the April start so customers do not arrive under the old timetable.