South Korean govt new rule- Employees must not overwork- shutdown

Seoul, March 22: The government in the South Korean capital is introducing a new initiative to "force" its employees to leave work on time -- by shutting down all their computers at 8 p.m. on Fridays.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG), it was trying to stop a "culture of working overtime" as the country has some of the longest working hours in the world, the BBC reported.

The "shutdown initiative" will be rolled out across three phases over the next three months. Government employees in Seoul work at an average of 2,739 hours a year -- about 1,000 hours more than workers in other developed countries.

The programme will begin on March 30, with all computers switched off by 8 p.m. The second phase will begin in April, with employees having their computers turned off by 7.30 p.m. on the second and fourth Friday that month.