The Constitutional Court has ruled that the 52-hour workweek system that limits weekly work hours is constitutional.

According to legal circles on Monday, the judges of the Constitutional Court unanimously rejected a petition filed by a group of lawyers against Clause 1 of Article 53 of the Labor Standards Act last Wednesday. 

The court reportedly said that the problem of Korea’s long working hours is known internationally. The Act was revised in March 2018 to limit working hours to a maximum of 52 hours a week in order to shorten actual working hours and reduce working on holidays. 

The court also said that although employers and workers are restricted in their freedom of contract and occupational freedom due to the 52-hour workweek system, there is a greater need to resolve the issue of long working hours. 

The court said that various policies are being implemented to address problems that may arise from the introduction of the system. 

The court also dismissed a petition against a law on the minimum wage system, saying that the system does not directly infringe the plaintiffs' basic rights. 

The group of lawyers for human rights and unification of Korea filed the petitions in May 2019, claiming that these systems violate the basic rights of small business owners and self-employed people, such as the freedom of contract and the right to work.