The Korean office, in the words people use

On the second morning at a new Korean company, someone introduces themselves with a slight bow and a title, and you realise you have no idea where that title sits. By the end of the first week you will probably have been called “…님” by people who are your seniors, invited to a dinner you did not know was optional, and sent a message at ten at night that may or may not need an answer. None of this is in the contract. All of it is in the words people use.

We are Korean teachers, not HR consultants, so this article is a glossary with context, not a rulebook. Korean offices differ a great deal: a ten-person startup and a large conglomerate can feel like two different countries. We therefore separate what we can source from what is our own explanation. Where we cite a survey we give its year, and where a survey is old we say so. Where we only explain a word we say that too, because we could not find sources for office manners such as nunchi, approval routines or dress, and we will not invent statistics for them. Each phrase is shown in Korean with its meaning, so you can say it aloud before you need it.

The rank ladder, from the bottom up

Most Korean companies, especially larger ones, use a ladder of titles (직급, jikgeup) that is separate from the job itself. The ladder tells people how to address you and what level of politeness to use. Below is the order a newcomer meets most often. It is our general explanation of common practice. We could not find a source for the exact order at every company, and some firms have removed or merged steps.

Notice the pattern: surname, then title, then “님”, as in “김 과장님”, not “김씨”. Using a first name alone with a senior, or “씨” with someone above you, sounds sharp. When you do not yet know someone’s title, “선배님” (sunbae-nim, a senior of any kind) or the person’s role, such as “팀장님”, is a safe holding word in many places. If you misjudge, a quick “죄송합니다, 직함이 어떻게 되세요?” (sorry, what is your title?) is far better than guessing for a month.

A title is a way of speaking to someone, not only a position.

님 culture: when the ladder is switched off

Not every workplace wants the ladder. Media report that Samsung Electronics reduced its number of rank steps and moved to “님” for address, that CJ introduced “님” in 2000, and that the Ministry of the Interior and Safety held a three-day “Title-Free Day” event from 21 to 23 January 2026. A study reported in April 2026 adds that some companies went back to their old system after trying the change. So “님” without titles is real, and so is the return to titles. Which one you meet depends on the company, and sometimes on the team.

In a startup you may hear a given name plus 님, as in “민수님”, or English nicknames even for a founder. Our advice is simple: for the first week, copy what the person who hired you does. If your manager says “…님” to a director, you do the same. If someone says “편하게 부르세요” (call me whatever is comfortable), you can relax, though it is wise to wait until the offer comes from them rather than from you.

회식: the after-work dinner, and its decline

회식 (hoesik) is a team dinner, often with drinks, after work. Its reputation is long: late nights, rounds at a second and third place, and a quiet pressure to stay. What we can say with a source is smaller and more recent. A financial daily reported on 14 October 2026 that since the pandemic many teams stop after the first round, and that the number of pubs has fallen below 20,000. That is a qualitative trend, not a measurement of how often people actually go.

For numbers we are limited to older surveys. A 2020 JobKorea survey, as we logged it, found 65.1 percent of workers had a team dinner about once a month. A 2023 Trend Monitor survey, also logged secondhand, found 24.2 percent saying that once or twice a year is the right frequency. These are older surveys from 2020 and 2023, with different questions and different samples, so they cannot be compared with each other and they do not describe today. We found no 2026 survey, so we do not say how common dinners are now.

Phrases you will hear: “오늘 회식이 있는데 시간 되세요?” (we have a dinner today, are you free?), “1차만 가요” (let us do only the first round), and “먼저 일어나겠습니다” (I will head off first). If you do not drink, “저는 술을 안 마셔요” is understood more easily than newcomers fear, and a glass of water or soda is usually accepted. Pouring for a senior with both hands is still a common courtesy, and it is a good moment to use the polite words you already know.

눈치: reading the room

눈치 (nunchi) literally means eye-measure, and it is the skill of noticing what is unsaid: who is waiting for whom to leave, whether a question will embarrass a senior in public, whether “글쎄요” (hmm, I wonder) is a soft no. We do not have survey data on it and we will not invent any. It is useful as vocabulary. “눈치가 있다” is a compliment, “눈치가 없다” is a mild complaint, and “눈치 보다” means to be wary of what others will think.

Practical use: a “알겠습니다” may mean “I heard you”, not “I agree”. If something matters, follow up in writing with “확인 차 여쭙니다” (I am asking just to confirm). Most Korean colleagues read this as care, not distrust. And if you are the one giving the instruction, a clear “이해되셨어요?” (did that make sense?) saves everyone from guessing.

야근 and 연차: the hours and the leave

야근 (yageun) is overtime, and 연차 (yeoncha) is paid annual leave. The legal frame for hours is a 40-hour week plus up to 12 hours of overtime, which makes 52, and since January 2024 the ministry reads that limit by the week. That is a media report of an administrative reading, so check it against your own contract. The 2026 minimum wage, from the ministry itself, is 10,320 won an hour, or 2,156,880 won a month for a 40-hour week with the paid weekly rest day included.

On leave, a community summary of the Labor Standards Act says a worker with at least 80 percent attendance in a year gets 15 days, and that leave grows by one day every two years up to 25. We have not checked this against the statute, so confirm it with your employer. What we can source about real use is a survey. In December 2025 the civic group Gapjil 119 reported that 37.9 percent of the 1,000 workers it asked took fewer than six days of leave in 2025, rising to 76.8 percent at workplaces with fewer than five employees, and that 56.2 percent had been contacted about work while on leave. It is a civic-group survey reported in the media, not an official statistic.

Phrases: “오늘 야근하시나요?” (are you working late today?), “연차 쓰고 싶습니다” (I would like to take a leave day), and “반차 써도 될까요?” (may I take half a day?). The usual courtesy is to ask early and name the date. Our own note, not a statistic: a leave request is often easier when it is phrased as a plan with a handover, such as “그날 업무는 미리 정리해 두겠습니다”.

Your contract sets the hours. Your team sets the tone.

카톡 after hours

Many Korean workplaces use KakaoTalk (카톡) for work, and the line between office and home blurs there. In February 2026 Gapjil 119 reported that, of 1,000 workers surveyed, 66 percent had received work contact after hours or on days off in the previous year, 30.8 percent after 10 pm, and 80.5 percent supported a law banning it. These figures come from a survey by a civic group, reported in the media in 2026. It is not an official statistic, and we do not know how the sample was chosen.

Phrases: “퇴근했습니다. 내일 아침에 확인하겠습니다.” (I have left work, I will check tomorrow morning), “늦은 시간에 죄송합니다” (sorry for the late hour, a phrase you may receive before a message), and “급한 건가요?” (is it urgent?). The last one is polite, direct and often welcome. Whether you answer at night is a matter between you and your team, and your contract and the law decide what can be required.

보고 and 결재: how decisions travel

보고 (bogo) is reporting up: you tell your senior what you did, what you plan and what went wrong, often before being asked. 결재 (gyeoljae) is formal approval, the signature or digital sign-off of someone above you. In many companies a purchase, a leave day or a document waits for a chain of these. We have no survey on how common each step is, so this is vocabulary and not a statistic, and companies vary.

Phrases: “중간 보고드립니다” (an interim report), “결재 올렸습니다” (I have sent it up for approval), “협조 부탁드립니다” (I ask for your cooperation), and “참조로 넣어드릴게요” (I will add you as a cc). A short, early “보고” prevents most of the awkward moments new colleagues tell us about. A good rule is to report the problem the day you see it, together with one idea for fixing it.

Lunch

Lunch is often taken with colleagues, and “점심 드셨어요?” (have you eaten lunch?) works as a greeting as much as a question. The only figures we have come from a 2019 JobKorea survey reported in the media: 23.6 percent ate alone and the average lunch cost 6,110 won. That is an older survey, seven years old, and prices have changed, so please do not read it as today’s reality.

명절 gifts and holiday courtesy

Before 추석 (Chuseok) and 설날 (Lunar New Year), many companies give a gift set, and some staff give small gifts to seniors. A blog survey of 991 workers, which is community data and not official, found that 38.1 percent had received a gift set, that 36.0 percent had received cash, and that 84.1 percent preferred cash to a set. We could not find a survey of gifts to bosses, so we do not describe that custom with numbers.

Phrases: “즐거운 명절 보내세요” (have a good holiday), “새해 복 많이 받으세요” (a happy new year), and “감사히 받겠습니다” (I accept with thanks). If you wonder about gift rules at your company, “회사 규정이 있나요?” is a safe question for a colleague.

Dress

We have no data on dress, and we will not generalise. The honest summary is “회사마다 달라요” (it depends on the company). Some workplaces are formal and some are casual, and the quickest way to know is to ask. On day one, “복장 규정이 있나요?” (is there a dress code?) is a good question for HR, and “편한 복장이어도 돼요?” (is casual all right?) is a good one for a teammate.

Ten phrases from your first week

Every phrase above uses the polite “-습니다 / -아요/어요” patterns that appear from the first levels onward. Learn them as whole chunks and you will recognise them when your colleagues say them to you.

Try Level 3ALevel 3A is where workplace Korean starts: polite requests, giving reasons, and the phrases above in real sentences. We make no promise about a job or a visa.