The effects of a 52-hour workweek policy on meat consumption patterns in Korea

The 52-hour workweek policy in Korea is a system that limits the maximum working hours per week to 52 hours including holiday work, which has been treated separately from overtime work during a week. Although this policy is designed to improve the quality of life and create jobs, it may also reduce the income of some workers. In general, it can be assumed that reduced working hours increase consumption at home. This study analyzed the effect of the 52-hour work policy on meat consumption patterns with the ordered logit model. Major factors considered in this study include working hours, income, and consumption frequency. It distinguished domestic and workplace consumption. The results show that the policy has had an impact on meat consumption patterns both at home and at work. If there is no change in income and only the working hours decrease, meat consumption in households increases. On the other hand, if both income and working hours decrease, household meat consumption decreases. Moreover, reduced working hours decrease the frequency of office happy hour and meat consumption in the workplace. However, the 52-hour workweek policy applies only to workers working more than 52 hours per week; thus, it is difficult to determine the overall effect of the policy on national meat consumption patterns.