Youth Community Union says 81 % of cafes nationwide pay no allowances A former part - time coffee shop worker filed a complaint with the Ministry of Employment and Labor on Wednesday that the nation ’ s largest coffee shop franchise , Caffe Bene , had refused to pay him and his coworkers with weekly holiday allowances . If accepted , the complaint is expected to pave way for tens of thousands of youths working at coffee shops nationwide to receive about 20 billion won ( $ 18 . 5 million ) in missed payments . According to Youth Community Union , the complaint was filed against Kim Sun - kwon , CEO of Caffe Bene , by a part - timer who had worked for one of the branches for three months and hadn ’ t been paid with the weekly holiday allowances . Under the Labor Standards Act , weekly holiday allowance should be given to an employee who fulfills his or her weekly contractual working hours . The purpose of the system is to reduce the fatigue of workers , protect their health and to provide time to participate in social and cultural activities , it said . If a daily worker works for six consecutive days per week , actual working days , not contractual working days , must be applied and weekly holiday must be granted . The employer must pay weekly holiday allowances separate from wages for daily workers , unless the affected worker agrees to receive the weekly holiday allowance in advance with their daily wages . The system is adapted to all workplaces hiring any staff working for more than 15 hours a week . The Youth Union revealed that out of 220 large coffee shops surveyed nationwide , 81 . 2 percent haven ’ t paid their workers the allowances . Those studied were Caffe Bene , Angel - in - us , Coffee Bean , Hollys , Pascucci , Starbucks , and Tom & Toms . They are believed to have neglected to pay more than 19 . 7 billion won in allowances of the kind over the past three years . The researchers said the outcome was especially shocking as some “ global standardized ” franchises were listed on top . Coffee Bean , the U . S . - based franchise , has paid none while Starbucks , one of the largest in the world , is suspected to have had contracts with its part timers based on 15 hour - a week system to evade the allowance payment . “ But in reality , many of the workers work for more than 15 hours a week , ” the union said . These companies have refused to pay their allowances and the youth union had to take legal steps to set things straight , they said . “ Coffee shop franchises have become one of the most popular ways for large or global companies to penetrate local retail markets . Angel - in - us is run by Lotte while Starbucks is co - owned by Shinsegae and Pascucci is run by SPC . However , these companies have refused to pay the money , ” said Kim Young - kyung , head of the union . “ They put fair trade as a marketing tool but are not being fair in their staff welfare and legal responsibilities . We will seek to file lawsuits against the heads of the franchises if they show no sign of improving , ” she added . On Wednesday , Caffe Bene said it would pay all due weekly holiday allowances to all incumbent and former part time workers . “ We regret the mishap and our financial department has already started calculating the figures , ” a Caffe Bene spokeswoman told The Korea Herald without elaborating on the specific amount of money it owed . By Bae Ji - sook ( baejisook @ heraldm . com )