A government body mediating negotiations on next year’s minimum wage has proposed the 2021 wage be set somewhere between eight-thousand-620 won and nine-thousand-110 won. 

The Minimum Wage Commission on Monday held its eighth general meeting this year and proposed a minimum wage hike of zero-point-three percent to six-point-one percent from this year’s level of eight-thousand-590 won. 

The proposal was made on the last day of the provisionary legal deadline to review next year’s minimum wage. A final decision on the wage hike level is expected to be made as early as Tuesday. 

Unions initially called for a 16-point-four-percent yearly increase, while employers wanted a two-point-one-percent cut. But the comparative demands were revised last Thursday to a nine-point-eight percent increase and a one-percent cut. 

Once the commission offers a proposal, labor and the management representatives are required to negotiate within the proposed hike rate.