Press Releases

HR Insight, in partnership with the Family-Friendly Support Center of the Korea Institute for Healthy Family, introduces companies that are leading the way in creating family-friendly organizational cultures.

In this issue, HR Insight explores the journey of U2XLab, which received the 2025 Prime Minister’s Award for Outstanding Family-Friendly Company for its commitment to the belief that employees perform at their best when they enjoy their work. The company has developed family-friendly policies that reflect employees’ life stages, gradually expanded flexible working arrangements, and fostered an organizational culture that provides psychological safety.

Laboratory inside U2XLAB’s Office

U2XLab is a healthcare company that interprets human health through data. Earlier this year, U2Bio integrated the “sample analysis services” of SML Meditree, which it acquired, with the “personalized health solution business” previously operated by U2Bio. Through this integration, U2XLab is creating synergies by bringing together clinical trial sample analysis for new drug development and personalized healthcare solutions based on gut microbiome analysis.

As part of the integration of the two previously separate organizations, U2XLab newly established its family-friendly and flexible working policies by combining the strengths of the systems previously operated by SML Meditree and U2Bio. The company designed an integrated system that respects employees’ individual life stages and autonomy.

U2XLAB team members discussing the company’s products

Family-Friendly Policies Designed around Employees’ Life Stages

U2XLab’s family-friendly policies were designed to reflect both employees’ life stages and the characteristics of its R&D-focused organization. U2XLab is a young organization with most employees in their early 30s, and women account for approximately 70% of its workforce. This made employees relatively more vulnerable to career disruptions during major life transitions such as childbirth and childcare.

At the same time, given the company’s focus on R&D and clinical sample analysis, employee expertise and continuity are particularly important. As a company operating as an institution certified by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, replacing personnel responsible for specialized work is not always straightforward, and it can take considerable time for new employees to develop the necessary expertise. As a result, personnel gaps can directly lead to operational risks.

Against this backdrop, U2XLab has sought to create an environment where key employees can continue their careers without interruption through its family-friendly policies.

First, the company operates a fertility treatment leave program that provides up to one year of leave, exceeding the statutory standard. Because fertility treatment often requires an extended period of care, the program is designed to allow employees to focus on treatment without the burden of concerns about career disruption.

During pregnancy, employees can reduce their working hours by up to two hours per day and use the flexible working-hours system. Employees experiencing high-risk pregnancy conditions can use reduced working hours throughout their entire pregnancy.

U2XLab also operates a “Buddy Program” to support employees returning from maternity leave or parental leave as they readjust to the organization and transition back into their roles.

The program was initially introduced to help new hires adapt to the organization by pairing them with peers who perform similar work. Its scope has since been expanded to include employees who joined the company following the merger, as well as employees returning from maternity or parental leave.

In particular, employees returning from maternity or parental leave are paired with colleagues who have childcare experience, allowing them to share practical advice and empathy based on firsthand experience. This helps reduce the psychological burden associated with readjusting to the workplace after returning from leave.

U2XLab also operates an extensive educational support program for employees’ children. The company provides up to KRW 1 million per quarter for elementary, middle, and high school education and up to KRW 7 million per semester for university tuition, regardless of the number of children. The program helps ease employees’ financial burden while also supporting long-term employee retention.

The company also operates programs designed to support employees and their families more broadly, rather than focusing solely on employees with children.

On the third Friday of every month, U2XLab operates a “Family Day,” allowing all employees to leave work two hours early. Employees who need time for family caregiving or personal care can work remotely up to 20 times per year. Even when working remotely for caregiving purposes, employees continue to receive meal allowances, allowing them to focus on their personal and family needs.

The company also provides one paid day off on special occasions such as birthdays through its “Special Occasion Leave” program, helping employees spend meaningful time with their families.

A Flexible Working System Evolved Step by Step

For flexible working arrangements to deliver meaningful results, continuously improving the system to fit the organization is more important than simply introducing a policy. U2XLab has likewise developed its working arrangements gradually by reflecting employees’ actual work patterns and feedback from the field.

U2XLab currently operates a flexible working-hours system centered around core hours from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Employees can independently set their start and end times down to the minute while completing eight hours of work per day.

This system was not established all at once. It has gradually expanded by incorporating employees’ actual work patterns and experiences using the system. Initially, the company introduced staggered working hours, allowing employees to choose start times in one-hour increments, such as 8:00, 9:00, or 10:00 a.m. The system was subsequently expanded to 30-minute increments and has now evolved to allow employees to adjust their schedules in one-minute increments.

The company’s leave system has also been divided into smaller time increments. Initially offering only full-day and half-day annual leave, U2XLab subsequently introduced two-hour increments and then one-hour increments, making leave use more flexible and convenient for employees.

As flexibility in working hours and leave has increased, the company has also strengthened its management systems accordingly. Because flexible working arrangements are based on employee autonomy, ensuring the reliability and fairness of the system is essential.

U2XLab has therefore integrated its attendance management system with a facial recognition system to maintain accurate records of employees’ working hours and attendance, creating a balance between autonomy and accountability.

Strengthening Psychological Safety to Support Autonomous Management

U2XLab aims to foster a culture of “autonomous management,” in which employees make their own decisions and take responsibility for their work. For this autonomy to function effectively, the company believes that psychological safety must come first.

Accordingly, U2XLab is building a culture where employees can freely express their opinions and engage in discussions regardless of their position or title. During meetings, opposing views and different perspectives are encouraged, allowing employees to focus on solving problems rather than worrying about potential disadvantages from expressing their opinions.

Psychological safety is also supported through the company’s communication programs. U2XLab’s HR team conducts regular one-on-one meetings and coaching programs to continuously monitor employees’ stress levels, organizational adjustment, and career development.

The company also provides leaders with a “One-on-One Guide” to facilitate safer and more candid conversations with employees on a range of topics, including onboarding, collaboration, retrospectives, and leadership.

In addition, U2XLab uses the Birkman Method to help leaders gain a more comprehensive understanding of their team members’ personalities and approaches to collaboration. Through this process, the company aims to reduce misunderstandings arising from differences in working styles and support work allocation and coaching that take individual characteristics into account.

The Journey Toward Sustainable Corporate Growth

U2XLab’s family-friendly policies, flexible working arrangements, and initiatives designed to strengthen psychological safety go beyond employee benefits; they are also having a direct impact on organizational performance.

Employees’ experience of seeing their needs translated into actual workplace policies has helped strengthen trust in the organization and contributed to high organizational satisfaction scores averaging above 4.0.

These policies are also having a significant impact on the company’s employer branding. In particular, the number of job applicants has increased since U2XLab received its family-friendly company certification, while candidates have shown strong interest by asking about the company’s family-friendly policies during the recruitment interview process.

With “sustainable corporate growth” as its goal, U2XLab plans to continue launching new initiatives as small-scale pilot programs, gradually expanding them based on their effectiveness and continuously improving its policies based on employee feedback.

Go to Article : [HR Insight] U2XLab: Driving Sustainable Growth through Family-Friendly Policies that Support Employees Throughout Their Life Stagesecruitment of Specialized Personnel