The government plans to expand cash incentives for companies that extend their retirement age as part of measures to cope with the looming mass retirement of baby boomers, and more broadly, the rapidly aging workforce, officials said Tuesday. The Ministry of Employment and Labor unveiled its five-year master plan, which includes more incentives to encourage employers to adopt a peak salary system, defer the retirement age and hire more senior workers. The 2012-2016 plan, which was approved by th

The government plans to check the environmental safety of all kindergartens and other facilities for children by 2016 and set guidelines on the use of phthalates and four other materials in infant feeding bottles and other baby products. Also it will require builders to notify of any use of housing materials that contain atopy-causing substances. These are the highlights of the Ministry of Environment’s 2012 plans reported to President Lee Myung-bak on Tuesday. “In order to minimize potential he

The National Assembly’s foreign affairs committee on Tuesday adopted a resolution demanding a renegotiation of the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement, especially for the modification, reversing or abolition of the Investor-State Dispute settlement clause.The panel also urged the government to conduct in-depth researches on the U.S. federal and state laws which may come in conflict with the trade deal and make due diplomatic efforts to solve the problem.Though some of the ruling party lawmakers disa

South Korea’s plan to purchase Global Hawk unmanned reconnaissance planes has been put off by one year as the U.S. government has not agreed to the sale yet, a government source said Monday. With the planned purchase of the Global Hawks hitting a snag, South Korea plans to invite two more models of U.S.-made spy drones ― the Global Observer made by AeroVironment and Boeing’s Phantom Eye ― to bid for the project, the source said. “We will map out a new acquisition plan next year to select one amo

Volkswagen Korea, the local importer and distributor of Volkswagen vehicles, is recalling 2,750 diesel cars in South Korea for faulty fuel pipes that could break and cause fuel leaks, the government said Monday.The recall covers the Golf, Jetta, Tiguan and Passat models produced from Jan. 6, 2009 to Jan. 24, 2011, according to the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs.The ministry said the vehicles have fuel lines that could wear out under vibration, causing leaks that could also catc

Samsung Electronics Co. said Monday that it has agreed to end its joint liquid crystal display venture with Sony Corp. as the global panel industry continues to struggle with a prolonged downturn in TV demand. The Korean firm decided to buy Sony’s entire stake in the joint venture, S-LCD Corp., for 1.08 trillion won ($939.6 million), it said in a statement. The deal is expected to be completed by the end of next month, pending regulatory approval. Even though the joint venture will come to a clo

STX OSV Holdings Ltd., a European unit of South Korean shipbuilding conglomerate STX Group, has clinched a 40 billion won ($33.6 million) deal to build a fish feed carrier, the group said Monday.Under the deal with Eidsvaag AS, STX OSV will deliver the vessel by the second quarter of 2013, the company said in a statement.The vessel, 75 meters long and 13.6 meters wide, will be used to deliver fish feed to fish farms and operate for Skretting AS, the world leader in the production and supply of f

South Korea will spend $2.61 million in the next four years to help fight foot-and-mouth disease in Southeast Asian countries, a main source of the disease that affects hoofed animals, including cows and pigs, the government said Monday.Under a joint prevention program with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, the money will help set up disease prevention and control systems in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, according to the Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.The