The employment rates and wages of South Korea's female workers significantly dropped after they become mothers, with about one in two mothers leaving their jobs after giving birth, a recent study showed Monday. According to a report released by the Korea Development Institute, women's employment rates decreased by 47.1 percent in the short term -- defined as within four years after childbirth -- and by 43.4 percent in the long term -- defined as five to 10 years after childbirth. Simil

Recent differences in monsoon season patterns due to narrow precipitation zones: experts

An online community dealing with information about administrative actions related to drunk driving has sparked debate, with many decrying the forum members for sharing know-how to obtain leniency after being caught in the crime. The webpage on Naver, South Korea's largest search engine, has well over 80,000 members as of Monday. People in the group are sharing personal experiences related to drunk driving, hit-and-run incidents and other violations of the Road Traffic Act. Categories of t

Starting from Aug. 1, police will launch an intensive crackdown on drugs for three months, with their main focus on targeting drug use in clubs to combat narcotics circulation via entertainment venues. The Korean National Police Agency's National Office of Investigation on Monday said the action comes amid concerns that drugs could be widely distributed and used in clubs at popular vacation spots across the nation. Under the scheme, officials plan to intensify their efforts in collecting de

Hospitals were set to begin hiring about 7,700 trainee doctors on Monday, although medical professors have warned of boycotting their training programs in protest of the government's push for accepting the resignations of striking trainees. Monthslong standoffs with trainee doctors over the medical school admission quota hikes have shown no end in sight, as trainee doctors have been unresponsive to the government's appeasement steps, including a plan to abandon all punitive steps again

Kim Beom-su, the founder of Kakao Corp., was to attend a court hearing Monday on an arrest warrant requested for him over alleged stock price manipulation related to the firm's takeover of K-pop powerhouse SM Entertainment last year. The Seoul Southern District Court was scheduled to hold a hearing for Kim around 2 p.m., two weeks after prosecutors questioned the tech tycoon about his alleged involvement in the manipulation of SM shares. The court is expected to decide whether to issue an a

The presidential office held an emergency meeting Sunday to assess the damage caused by recent downpours and decided to establish an inter-agency headquarters to prevent further damage from additional heavy rain or typhoon forecast next week. The government also plans to promptly carry out emergency repairs to damaged facilities by providing special grants and operating emergency recovery teams, according to Jeong Hye-jeon, the presidential spokesperson, during a press briefing. Last week, Presi

An overwhelming majority of the child victims in sex crimes perpetrated by a family member were aged 13 or younger when they were first victimized, a parliamentary report showed Sunday. The National Assembly Research Service compiled a report based on its survey of the four juvenile protective facilities for the victims of sex crimes by family members, which were established in 2010. Of the 316 children and teens currently under protection, 115 -- or 36.4 percent -- were first subject to the c

The primary victim in an infamous 2004 gang rape case by high school boys discussed the case in a rare interview with a local media outlet that aired Saturday, explaining to the public the pains she had to endure due to the horrid incident and secondary damages that followed. The victim, referred to as Kim, not her real name, in a recent episode of "Unanswered Questions" on SBS said she had been living in fear of retribution from the 44 alleged perpetrators of the incident in Miryang

Questioning of first lady conducted without prior notice to Supreme Prosecutors' Office

Former US President Donald Trump once again boasted of his friendship with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during his campaign rally in Michigan on Saturday, just two days after delivering similar remarks at the Republican National Convention in Wisconsin. "You know, a lot of times the press would say, 'He gets along with Kim Jong-un. North Korea has a lot of nuclear weapons.' I got along with them great. You were never in danger with me as your president. It’s a good thing

Starting Monday, local training hospitals will begin posting job openings for junior doctors who will begin training in the second half of the year, and the registration for the state-run medical license test will open in the government's latest steps to fill the months-long medical void. The recruitment comes after 110 out of 151 medical institutions that hired junior doctors last week completed processing the resignations of 7,648 junior doctors who left their worksites in mid-February to

South Koreans ate an average of more than two chickens per month last year, doubling their per capita chicken consumption over the past two decades, according to data released Sunday. Statistics from the Korea Rural Economic Institute show that per capita chicken consumption reached 26 birds last year, with domestic production accounting for 20 birds per person and imports making up the remaining six. By the weight of chicken meat consumed, excluding bone weight, the per capita figure increase

From traditional hanok to art museums, discover Seoul's innovative, yet budget-friendly, wedding venues

A man wanted on suspicion of rape has been apprehended after 18 years on the run after a nurse recognized him from a wanted poster. The police in Mokpo, South Jeolla Province said Friday that the suspect - 54-year-old Kim Yang-min - was apprehended after a nurse at a clinic in Seoul reported the man to the police, having recognized his face from a police poster of criminal suspects on the run. Kim is suspected of breaking into a home in Mokpo in 2006 and sexually assaulting the resident. The inv