🛡️ Statutory Mandatory Training Guide
The Big 5 statutory trainings plus workplace harassment and emotional labor worker protection — who must attend, for how many hours, how often, and the fine for skipping, in one table
Statutory mandatory training comes around every year, and every year you have to look up the rules again. This page covers seven subjects: the so-called “Big 5” — sexual harassment prevention, disability awareness, personal information protection, occupational safety and health, and retirement pension — plus workplace harassment prevention and emotional labor worker protection training, which people often ask about together. For each, you will find who must attend, required hours, frequency, fines, and whether online delivery is accepted. Every subject also has a detail page covering the legal provisions and the points HR managers most often get wrong, and the quote calculator at the bottom calculates the instructor fee for a bundle of subjects on the spot.
Which training is required, for whom, and how much?
Select a subject name to open its detail page: legal basis, training content, conditions for simplified training, and FAQ.
| Subject | Audience | Training hours | Frequency | Fine for non-compliance | Online allowed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🚫 Sexual Harassment PreventionEqual Employment Opportunity Act | Employers and all employees at every workplace | No legal minimum hours (usually 1 hour) | At least once a year | KRW 5 million (≈ US$3,740) | Accepted (delivery confirmation required) |
| ♿ Disability AwarenessAct on Employment Promotion of Persons with Disabilities | Employers and all employees at every workplace | 1 hour or more | Once a year (Jan–Dec) | KRW 1 million (≈ US$750)–3 million | Accepted (with specialist or in-house instructors appearing) |
| 🔒 Personal Information ProtectionPersonal Information Protection Act | Personal data handlers (regardless of company size) | No statutory minimum hours | Regular (at least once a year recommended) | No fine for failing to provide the training itself | Accepted |
| ⛑️ Occupational Safety & HealthOccupational Safety and Health Act | 5 or more employees at all times (some industries excluded) | 6 hours per half year for office workers · 12 hours per half year for others | Every half year (annually for supervisors) | KRW 100,000 (≈ US$75)–500,000 per untrained person | Accepted (remote conditions apply) |
| 🏦 Retirement PensionEmployee Retirement Benefit Security Act | Participants in workplace retirement pension plans (DB/DC) | No statutory minimum hours | At least once a year | KRW 2 million (≈ US$1,500) to 10 million | Accepted (not allowed on DC posting) |
| 🤝 Harassment PreventionLabor Standards Act | Workplaces with 5 or more employees (anti-harassment provisions) | No statutory hours | Not mandatory (once a year recommended) | No fine for not providing the training | Either direction |
| 🎧 Emotional Labor Worker ProtectionOccupational Safety and Health Act | Workplaces with employees who deal directly with customers or complaints (any size) | No legally required hours (usually 1–2 hours) | No legal frequency (once a year recommended) | KRW 3 million (≈ US$2,240) to 10 million for failing to take follow-up measures | Either direction |
🚫
Workplace Sexual Harassment Prevention Training
Equal Employment Opportunity ActAll employees, including the employer, at least once a year. It is the first topic inspected, so keep your records in order too.
See audience, hours, and fines →
♿
Workplace Disability Awareness Training
Act on the Promotion of Employment of Persons with DisabilitiesAll workplaces: every employee, including the employer, once a year for at least one hour. This is a subject with a legal minimum number of hours.
See audience, hours, and fines →
🔒
Personal Information Protection Training
Personal Information Protection ActApplies to employees who handle personal data. More than the fine, what decides liability after a data breach is whether you provided the training.
See audience, hours, and fines →
⛑️
Occupational safety and health training
Occupational Safety and Health ActWorkplaces with 5 or more regular employees (some industries excluded). Hours must be completed every half year, and they differ for office staff, field workers, and supervisors.
See audience, hours, and fines →
🏦
Retirement pension participant trainingInfo
Employee Retirement Benefit Security ActApplies only to workplaces with a retirement pension plan (DB or DC). Required once a year; for DC plans, the investment details cannot be met by posting a notice alone.
See audience, hours, and fines →
🤝
Workplace harassment prevention training
Labor Standards ActThe training itself is not legally required, but failing to take required measures carries a fine, so most companies run it every year together with sexual harassment prevention.
See audience, hours, and fines →
🎧
Emotional labor worker protection training
Occupational Safety and Health ActIt is not among the “Big 5,” but the enforcement rule lists training as a preventive measure employers must take. Any workplace with customer-facing staff, such as call centers, service counters, and hospitals, is covered regardless of size.
See audience, hours, and fines →
Annual schedule — what to do and when
We list the legal deadline separately from the recommended timing, so the deadline never catches you off guard. “Once a year” generally means once within the calendar year, but regular occupational safety and health training must be completed every half year (Jan–Jun · Jul–Dec).
Legal deadlineRecommended timing
Q1Jan–Mar
- January 31 — (50+ employees, if ordered to submit) submit the prior year’s disability awareness training results
- Plan this year’s training — topics, audience, sessions, and budget on one page
- Finish sexual harassment and workplace harassment prevention training together in Q1 and you will have an easier year-end
Q2Apr–Jun
- June 30 — Deadline for first-half regular occupational safety and health training for employees (6 hours for office workers · 12 hours for others)
- Disability awareness and personal data protection scheduled together in the first half
- Provide training when hiring in the first half; check annual subject completion
Q3Jul–Sep
- Check which subjects you haven’t done yet — second-half instructor schedules fill up in September and October
- Request retirement pension contribution and investment data from the pension provider
- Second-half occupational safety regular training and supervisor remaining-hours schedule confirmed
Q4Oct–Dec
- December 31 — Deadline for this year’s annual training (sexual harassment, disability awareness, retirement pension)
- Dec 31 — Second-half regular occupational safety and health training · 16 annual hours for supervisors due
- Make-up sessions for those who missed it (leave, return, new hires) · records organized
What HR managers actually ask
We counted the titles of 126 posts about statutory mandatory training in HR and training manager communities in 2026 (January–September). The most common were posts asking about costs for a bundle of subjects, such as “statutory mandatory training quote request.” By subject, occupational safety came first, followed by workplace bullying and sexual harassment. Because one post can list several conditions, the items do not add up to 126.
Request On-Site Training · Quote Calculator
We deliver all seven subjects on-site. Combining subjects in one session means fewer sessions and lower costs. Occupational safety and health (6 hours per half year for office workers) and retirement pensions (1 hour) are calculated at the legally required hours, and disability awareness and occupational safety and health are led by instructors who hold the qualifications the law requires.
Why Nanum Consulting
Training that goes beyond checking the box
Built around real cases and judgment practice, it gives employees clear standards for how to act — unlike training that replays the same video every year.
Bundled topic scheduling
We run sexual harassment, workplace harassment, disability, and personal data training back to back in one session, and provide attendance sheets and materials separately for each subject.
On-site · Live on Zoom
We deliver on-site at headquarters, plants, and branches, and we also run live remote sessions. For shift work, we split the same content into multiple sessions.
Documentation included
After the training, we put together a documentation package — attendance sheets, training materials, photos — ready to show at an inspection.
FAQ
What are the 5 key statutory mandatory training programs?
Usually this means: (1) workplace sexual harassment prevention training (Equal Employment Opportunity Act), (2) workplace disability awareness training (Act on Promotion of Employment of Persons with Disabilities), (3) personal information protection training (Personal Information Protection Act), (4) occupational safety and health training (Occupational Safety and Health Act), and (5) retirement pension subscriber training (Employee Retirement Benefit Security Act). It is not a legal term; HR managers simply group them this way. Workplace bullying prevention training is often asked about alongside these, but no provision requires private-sector employers to provide it. Emotional labor worker protection training is also not one of the five, but Article 41 of the Enforcement Rule of the Occupational Safety and Health Act lists training as one of the preventive measures employers must take, so it needs attention if you have customer-facing employees.
Do workplaces with fewer than 5 employees also have to provide statutory mandatory training?
It depends on the subject. Sexual harassment prevention training (employers with fewer than 10 employees may post or distribute materials instead) and disability awareness training (employers with fewer than 50 employees may distribute awareness materials instead) apply to all workplaces regardless of size. Personal information protection training also applies regardless of size if you process personal information. For occupational safety and health training, employers with fewer than 5 employees are subject only to special training, and retirement pension training applies only if you have a retirement pension plan.
Does every company have to provide occupational safety and health training?
No. Even with 5 or more regular employees, industries such as software development, information services, finance and insurance, and business support services are exempt from employee safety and health training under Appendix 1 of the Enforcement Decree of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, and workplaces with only office staff are also excluded. If you are covered, the requirement is 6 hours every half year for office workers and at least 12 hours every half year for other employees.
Can several subjects be combined into one training session?
Yes. Even if several subjects are run back to back in one session, each counts as completed as long as it meets the statutory content and hours for that subject (e.g., at least 1 hour for disability awareness). However, keep attendance sheets and materials separate for each subject so they serve as evidence during inspections. The <a href="/course/116">Four Mandatory Trainings in One Day</a> program, in which a single instructor covers four subjects (sexual harassment, disability awareness, personal data, occupational safety) in 4 hours, is built this way.
Does online training (e-learning) count?
All five subjects can be delivered online, but with conditions. For sexual harassment prevention, you must be able to confirm the material was actually delivered (email distribution or bulletin board notices alone are not accepted). For disability awareness, the content must feature or be produced with a professional or in-house instructor. Occupational safety and health remote training has requirements such as at least 60 minutes per subject, and supervisor training must be at least half in person. For retirement pension DC plan information, delivery must be by distribution, in-person session, or online, not by posting.
What records should we keep as proof that training was delivered?
Record the date, location, instructor, subject, training content (materials), and a list of attendees with signatures (attendance sheet), and where possible keep photos or online completion records as well. Sexual harassment prevention training and disability awareness training are legally required to be kept for three years; we recommend keeping records for the other subjects for the same period.
How much does an instructor for statutory mandatory training cost?
At Nanum Consulting, statutory mandatory training is a flat KRW 500,000 (≈ US$375) per hour (a single one-hour subject is billed as a 2-hour minimum), excluding VAT. For example, a 2-hour program combining one hour each of sexual harassment and workplace bullying prevention is KRW 1 (≈ US$1) million, and a 4-hour program combining one hour each of sexual harassment, disability awareness, personal information protection, and retirement pension is KRW 2 million (≈ US$1,500). If you split sessions by shift or branch, multiply by the number of sessions.
※ The governing law, who must attend, hours, and fines may vary by workplace size, industry, and legal amendments. This page is general information to aid understanding. Please check the relevant laws and your regional Ministry of Employment and Labor office to confirm how they apply to your workplace. Counts shown are reference figures tallied from the titles of public posts in HR and training manager communities (mainly recent posts on each board). .