적정임금 보장에 대한 국제기준의 시사

The Constitution of Korea provides the government's obligation to guarantee adequate wage and the implementation of the minimum wage system. In other words, concept of wages is largely divided into adequate wage and minimum wage from a constitutional point of view. And the government may be involved in wage determination, which is a private sector, according to the Constitution. As the Minimum Wage Act is in effect, normative standards have been established for the minimum wage, but there is no clear normative interpretation standard for the adequate wage. Therefore, it is necessary to obtain implications for its interpretation through international standards. Since its establishment in 1919, the International Labor Organization has proposed standards for adequate wage and inherited them through the Philadelphia Declaration. The UN adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that accepted the ILO's labor standards, followed by the enactment of International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights(the “ ICESCR”). In other words, the right to receive an adequate wage has now become one of human rights. South Korea has ratified the ICESCR. The ICESCR declares that everyone has the right to enjoy just and favorable working conditions. And when it comes to remuneration, it requires fair wages and equal remuneration for work of equal value without distinction of any kind, and a guarantee of a decent living for workers themselves and their families. This presented important standards for interpretation of adequate wage under the Constitution, and based on this, it is necessary to research on guaranteeing adequate wage.