Proposed bill: Partial Amendment to the Labor Standards Act

Proposed by Rep. Kim Ju-young (Democratic Party of Korea)

● With the expanding diversity of employment types, there has been a notable increase in cases of discrimination based on employment type. This amendment prohibits discrimination based on employment type and stipulates that work requiring the same or similar technologies, labor intensity and work conditions has equal value.

Proposed bill: Partial Amendment to the Act on the Consumer Protection in Electronic Commerce

Proposed by Rep. Yoon Doo-hyun (People Power Party)

● Recent incidents have sparked the demand for mail order brokers who operate e-commerce platforms to also be liable for deceptive acts by users who sell counterfeits or write fake reviews on their platforms. This amendment reinforces consumer protection by imposing joint compensation liability on the mail order broker for damages caused by fraudulent actions of the user.

Pending bill: Partial Amendment to the Distribution Industry Development Act

Proposed by Rep. Lee Jong-bae (People Power Party)

● Currently, the online businesses of large stores are subject to compulsory closures on certain dates and restrictions on business hours. However, the major shift from offline to online distribution channels has made regulations on online businesses to be deemed excessive. Moreover, critics of these restrictions say they do not help smaller businesses as originally intended. Therefore, this amendment allows discount stores and quasi-superstores to operate online services on dates where they are required to close.

Promulgated bill: Enforcement Decree of the Broadcasting Act

Competent Authority: Ministry of Science and ICT and Korea Communications Commission

● This bill separates the payment notice for and collection of TV license fees from electricity bills to ensure that people are aware of the collection of TV license fees and the fee amount. It prohibits persons with the duty to notify the payment and collection of TV license fees, as designated by the Korea Communications Commission, from combining the payment notice of such fees with their own services.

Administrative announcement: Partial Amendment to the Enforcement Decree of the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act

Competent Authority: Ministry of Economy and Finance

● This amendment aims to revamp the structure of the Korean financial exchange market into an open and competitive framework and modify macroprudential policies to ensure the government can respond to market changes in a timely and appropriate manner. It allows Registered Foreign Institutions (RFIs) to participate in the onshore financial exchange market and trade Korean won during trading hours in offshore financial exchange markets.

The Korea Herald republishes a weekly legislative report by local law firm DR & AJU LLC to provide the latest information on bills approved, proposed, pending and set to be promulgated. -- Ed.

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For any queries about the bills, contact cr@draju.com.