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A same-sex couple has filed a human rights petition after one partner was denied marriage leave, raising questions over whether employers can withhold workplace benefits from same-sex couples in the absence of legal recognition of same-sex marriage. The National Human Rights Commission of Korea told the local daily Hankyoreh on Tuesday that it received the petition on Oct. 30, 2025, and has completed its investigation. The case is currently under deliberation before a formal decision is made, the commission said. It is believed to be the first human rights petition in South Korea alleging discrimination over marriage leave for a same-sex couple. The petitioner, 33, applied for five days of marriage leave last year ahead of his wedding ceremony with his 36-year-old partner, whom he had been dating for two years. He submitted a wedding invitation as proof of the wedding. “I thought my request would be approved with just the wedding invitation, because other employees who got married were able to take special leave by submitting only their invitations,” the petitioner said. The institution’s employment rules list “marriage” as a condition for special leave, but do not specify what type of marriage qualifies or what documents are required as proof. However, the institution rejected the petitioner’s request. It marked his absence as unauthorized leave and deducted the corresponding amount from his wages and performance bonus. The petitioner claimed the measures amounted to discrimination and filed a petition with the NHRCK. “As a public institution, my workplace should have made its decision based on its employment rules, but the rules on marriage leave contain no provisions on gender or documents proving the legal validity of a marriage,” the petitioner said. “Approving other employees’ leave based only on wedding invitations, while refusing to approve mine, is clear discrimination,” he added. The institution told Hankyoreh that, because its internal rules do not contain any special exception, it interpreted marriage in line with Korea’s Civil Act, which is understood as recognizing marriage as a union between a man and a woman. It was therefore determined that same-sex marriage did not meet the conditions for special leave. This is not the first time same-sex couples have been excluded from employee benefits in South Korea. In 2022, the NHRCK dismissed a petition filed by a public official who sought bereavement leave after the death of the father of the official’s same-sex partner. In that case, however, the commission took into account that opposite-sex couples in common-law relationships were also ineligible for family event leave under the relevant rules. The NHRCK said in 2022 that discrimination arising from gaps in the existing legal system should be addressed through legislation. But some argue that discrimination in workplace welfare programs should be corrected regardless of whether same-sex marriage has been legalized, citing recent court rulings. In 2024, the Supreme Court ruled that a same-sex partner could be recognized as a dependent under the National Health Insurance Service, finding that treating same-sex partners differently from heterosexual partners in social security programs violated the constitutional principle of equality. submitted by /u/coinfwip4 |
Same-sex couple files human rights petition after public institution denies marriage leave
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