Moonsoo Kim: "Expanded School Roles, Labor Value Still Undervalued"

National Assembly Holds Forum on "How Have the Roles and Functions of Schools Changed?"
"Structural Problem of Shifting State Responsibility... Need for Institutional Reforms"

Democratic Party lawmaker Moonsoo Kim held a forum titled "How Have the Roles and Functions of Schools Changed? - Focusing on Non-Regular School Workers" on the 25th at the National Assembly, jointly with the National School Non-Regular Workers Solidarity and the Democratic Party Euljiro Committee. Photo by Moonsoo Kim's office

Democratic Party lawmaker Moonsoo Kim (representing Suncheon, Gwangyang, Gokseong, and Gurye-gap in South Jeolla Province) held a forum titled "How Have the Roles and Functions of Schools Changed? - Focusing on Non-Regular School Workers" on the 25th at the National Assembly, jointly with the National School Non-Regular Workers Solidarity and the Democratic Party Euljiro Committee.

This forum was organized to discuss the structural issues faced by non-regular school workers and to explore ways to improve related systems. Representative Kim emphasized the need for institutional reforms to restore public interest and improve working conditions.

At the forum, Professor Jiseon Moon of the Korea Employment and Labor Education Institute highlighted that "care work, which is predominantly carried out by women, is central to public education. However, serious internal conflicts arise due to gaps between job categories and a dual structure. It is necessary to standardize working conditions and reorganize the personnel system," she stressed.

Yunkyung Lee, former president of the Cham Education Parents' Association, argued that "the unstable treatment of non-regular workers is exacerbating educational inequality" and insisted that "their roles within the school community must be properly recognized."

During the designated discussion session, practitioners from various fields shared firsthand experiences from the field. Sujeong Kim, Senior Vice Chairperson of the National School Non-Regular Workers' Union, pointed out, "School meal services are facing a crisis, and the core issues are the lack of substitute personnel, high-intensity labor, and the unpaid work structure during school vacations."

Sungshik Park, Director of Policy Planning at the National Education Public Workers' Headquarters, emphasized, "Educational welfare is no longer peripheral but central to education, and a major policy shift is needed to support this."

Jaekwang Son, Head of the After-School Instructors Division at the National School Non-Regular Workers' Union, stated, "Since the implementation of Neulbom School, job insecurity among after-school instructors has intensified, and institutional recognition of their role as educational agents is necessary."

Mingyu Lee, Director of Organization at the National Education Public Workers' Headquarters, criticized, "The hasty implementation of Neulbom School has led to confusion in personnel management, and policies that are expanded without sufficient preparation are bound to fail."

Yoonsook Mo, Secretary General of the Korean Women's Trade Union, said, "Non-regular female workers in schools are experiencing double discrimination based on gender," and stressed that "institutional improvements from a gender perspective must be pursued in parallel."

The National School Non-Regular Workers Solidarity stated, "There is no school without non-regular school workers," and expressed hope that "today's discussion will lead to a redefinition of educational welfare work and serve as an opportunity for schools to be reborn as true communities."

Representative Kim diagnosed, "The issue of non-regular school workers is not just a problem for a specific occupation, but a structural problem in which the state has shifted the responsibility for care and welfare onto the private sector and female labor." He added, "As a member of the National Assembly's Education Committee, I will do my utmost to improve the system."

Meanwhile, the forum was attended by Kim Youngho, Chairperson of the National Assembly Education Committee, Byungdeok Min, Chairperson of the Democratic Party Euljiro Committee, as well as lawmakers Namgeun Kim, Kwanghee Lee, and Jungho Jeong. Through congratulatory remarks and other statements, they agreed on the need to recognize the public value of non-regular school labor and to establish legal and institutional frameworks to support it.