November 30, 2024

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US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen (right) speaks during a meeting with Bank of Korea employees at the central bank headquarters in Seoul on Tuesday. (BOK)

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said work-life balance plays a key role in shaping a work environment that is appealing to women, who she described as still unrepresented in workplaces, at a meeting with the Bank of Korea’s female workers held Tuesday in Seoul.

“Work-life balance is a tremendous problem. I guess it’s a huge problem here, too,” Yellen said, describing having a family while working in challenging jobs as a challenge for women pursuing a career. The meeting was part of her two-day trip meant to discuss economic ties with senior Korean policymakers.

Yellen – the first women to serve as chair of the US Federal Reserve and chief of the US Treasury – said marrying a partner who believed in a fair division of household labor was what had led her to be able to successfully juggle work and child-rearing. Quality childcare had also been helpful, she added.

Her remarks come as Korea still faces mounting calls from female entrepreneurs for greater access to childcare and awareness of both parents to be equally involved in raising their children. Many studies have found that the burden of child-rearing still falls disproportionally on women.

Encouraging women to take on challenging assignments and building an atmosphere to see such culture take place naturally empowers women, Yellen added, saying she worked to make that happen when she was at the Fed.

The most successful workers or those who “thrive” in central banks are ones who tackle the issues at hand, however challenging they may look, Yellen said, referring to the current economic woes gripping the global economy and prompting her to visit America’s one of the biggest Asian allies.

Secretary Yellen said she expects to see stronger economic ties between the two allies, having previously called out China for endorsing unfair trade practices. She has repeatedly backed what she refers to as “friend-shoring” – a coalition of market economies sharing similar values and trade practices that separate countries like Russia and China.

China has used its market position to disrupt the global economy, according to Yellen.

By Choi Si-young (siyoungchoi@heraldcorp.com)