Over the years, Korea 's rigid labor laws have pushed both local and foreign companies to rely heavily upon non-regular workers. There are two main types of non-regular workers in Korea : fixed-term employees, who are generally hired for 6 months to one year; and dispatch workers, who can be hired through temporary employment agencies in a select group of industries. The high usage of non-regular workers is mainly the result of the financial burden that comes with employing and terminating regular employees.
Until last year, no legislation existed to regulate the use of non-regular workers in Korea . Most court decisions were based on past rulings and outcomes varied from case to case. In general, if an employee's contract had been repeatedly renewed such that there was an expectation of permanent employment, then that person was considered by courts to be a regular employee.

The Non-Regular Workers' Act (NRWA) went into effect on July 1, 2007 and contains three sections. The first part, "The Act Concerning the Protection of Fixed-Term and Part-Time Employees," serves as a guide for how long a fixed-term employee can be used before he or she receives regular employee benefits. The second section, "The Act Relating to the Protection of Dispatch Workers," is a modification to an existing law protecting non-regular workers from discrimination. The third bill, "The Labor Relations Committee Act," is an amended version of an existing law and outlines the effective dates of the new legislation over the two year implementation period.

Since the Non-Regular Workers' Act became effective last summer, numerous controversial cases have been filed citing discriminatory treatment against non-regular workers. As a result, the Ministry of Labor (MOL), which originally drafted the legislation, has decided to revise the current law to be more specific. Some of the planned changes include extending the length of time allowed for fixed-term contracts, adding to the list of job categories for which dispatch workers can be used, and improving efforts to eliminate discrimination against non-regular workers. Moreover, tax breaks of up to 300,000 won ($204.54 USD) per person could be given to small and mid-sized companies who choose to transfer employees from non-regular to regular status.

Before finalizing these changes, the MOL plans to gather public comments and other data by the end of this year, submit an amendment to the National Assembly next year, and pass the legislation in 2010. The amendment would not be implemented until 2011.