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Photo = Homeplus |
[Alpha Biz= Kim Jisun] Homeplus announced last Friday that it had missed a ₩110 billion (approximately $82 million) contribution to its employee retirement fund due in 2025 due to short-term liquidity constraints following the commencement of court-led corporate rehabilitation procedures. The company, however, assured that the outstanding amount will be prioritized in its rehabilitation plan and repaid without delay.
According to Homeplus, the company currently manages its retirement fund through 15 financial institutions. While it completed all payments for the 2023 fiscal year, it failed to make this year’s required contribution of ₩54 billion, as well as an additional ₩56 billion in retroactive payments mandated by a Supreme Court ruling in December that revised the standard for ordinary wages.
“The initiation of corporate rehabilitation proceedings has temporarily restricted our liquidity,” a Homeplus spokesperson explained. “To sustain operations, we prioritized payments to business partners, resulting in the missed contribution.”
Homeplus plans to pay ₩36.7 billion, or one-third of the unpaid retirement fund, by February 2025. The remaining balance, including additional payments required due to the court ruling, will be reflected in the company’s rehabilitation plan and given repayment priority.
The company noted that its current retirement fund contribution rate stands at 83%. “Under normal circumstances, an 83% funding level poses no issue in fulfilling retirement payouts,” the spokesperson said. “Nevertheless, we deeply regret the concern this has caused our employees.”
“We understand the uncertainty felt by our staff due to the court proceedings,” the company added. “We are committed to fully repaying the missed contributions to ease employee concerns. Wages and retirement benefits are legally prioritized in repayments, and they will be paid in full without issue.”
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AlphaBIZ Kim Jisun(stockmk2020@alphabiz.co.kr)
