Seoul City Expands Childcare Support to Night Workers... 2,000 Won Per Hour for Late-Night Care

[Financial News] The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on the 3rd that it is expanding the eligibility for the 'Support Project for Private Childcare Services for Small Business Owners, etc.' to include night workers, and is piloting a late-night care service available from 10 PM to 6 AM the following day, for caregivers who struggle with childcare due to night work and irregular working hours.
This program supports the usage fees for private childcare services for caregivers with irregular working hours or frequent night and holiday work. Eligible families can receive support for childcare service fees for children aged 3 months to 12 years, up to a maximum of 3.6 million won for one child and up to 5.4 million won for two children.
This project is funded by donations from KB Financial Group and aims to alleviate the burden of caregiving for parents and support the balance of work and family life.
Night workers newly included in the support program are those who work or provide labor regularly and repeatedly between 10 PM and 6 AM the following day. This includes not only shift workers at hospitals and nursing facilities and late-night business employees, but also delivery and platform workers, and freelancers. Those working temporary night shifts or teleworkers whose primary workplace is their residence are excluded.
In particular, starting with this recruitment, a late-night care service available from 10 PM to 6 AM the following day will be piloted. The user's co-payment is 2,000 won per hour. If used for two hours from 10 PM to midnight, the cost is 4,000 won, and if used for four hours until 2 AM the following day, the cost is 8,000 won.
Late-night care is available for children aged 24 months to 12 years, and a dedicated agency handles reservations, counseling, and the coordination of care personnel to ensure stable service provision. In principle, emergency care, such as same-day requests, is not provided.
Applications can be submitted from September 3 to 18 on the Seoul Metropolitan Government's 'Birth and Parenting All-Information Channel' website. Eligibility is limited to small business owners and employees residing in Seoul who work at or operate businesses located in the city, workers at companies participating in the Work-Life Balance Point System, and night shift workers. The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to verify applicants' eligibility, select eligible households by the end of September, and notify them individually.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to analyze usage patterns and satisfaction levels during the pilot operation period to examine the times and locations where actual care demand is concentrated, as well as conditions for securing care personnel, in order to formulate future operational plans.
Ma Chae-sook, Director of the Women and Family Affairs Office of the Seoul Metropolitan Government, stated, "Being able to entrust children with peace of mind to parents working early morning shifts is an essential condition for balancing work and family," adding, "We will expand childcare support to include various types of night workers, such as shift workers and platform workers, to create an environment where parents can work with peace of mind even late at night."

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