"Recognition of Service Period Upon Cancellation of Military Alternative Service"

Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission and Military Manpower Administration to Improve Current System Recognizing Only One-Quarter

Industrial technical personnel working at production sites of small and medium-sized enterprises. (Photo by Asia Economy DB)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok]

#Mr. A was serving as an industrial technical personnel for military service at a company in Nonsan when he injured his back in August 2017. Unable to continue working, he submitted his resignation and switched to social service personnel, but only one-fourth of his previous military service period was recognized. Moreover, due to lack of available positions in 2018, he only started his service in 2019 and was set to be discharged by the end of 2020. (Complaint filed to the National Ombudsman in July 2018)

#Mr. B was advised to extend his one-month probation period during a consultation on April 29 regarding his transfer to industrial technical personnel supplementary service. He faced the choice of either extending the probation or resigning. (Complaint filed to the National Ombudsman in April 2020)

The government has initiated improvements to the system so that if an industrial support service member’s military service obligation is canceled according to the law, the entire previous service period will be recognized. Additionally, the system will be improved to ensure that individuals employed at designated military service companies are incorporated as military service personnel within 100 days.

The calculation method for the service period of industrial technical personnel, professional research personnel, and seafaring reserve personnel?who fulfill their military duties by serving a mandatory period at designated companies, research institutes, or ships?is set to be improved, and delays in the incorporation of industrial technical personnel are expected to be shortened.

On the 23rd, the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission and the Military Manpower Administration announced that they would implement the "Industrial Support Military Service Personnel Rights Protection Plan" reflecting these changes.

Under the current "Industrial Support Military Service System," military service obligations can be fulfilled by serving as industrial technical personnel (34 months for active duty candidates, 23 months for social service personnel candidates), professional research personnel (36 months), or seafaring reserve personnel (36 months) at designated period industries, research institutes, or shipping companies instead of active military service.

If reasons such as the closure of the designated company, the individual’s resignation, or cancellation of related licenses occur as stipulated by the Military Service Act, the incorporation is canceled, and the remaining service period must be completed as active duty or social service personnel.

There were numerous complaints that recognizing only one-fourth of the previous service period was unreasonable. Compared to other supplementary service categories such as public health doctors and public legal officers, who are recognized for the actual proportion of their service period, this was seen as unfair.

Accordingly, the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission changed the calculation method for the remaining service period so that if incorporation is canceled, the total service period is calculated based on the actual proportion of service completed.

Also, if an industrial support service member who is an active duty enlistment candidate has less than six months remaining when incorporation is canceled, they can serve as social service personnel.

Furthermore, to become an industrial technical personnel, one must be employed at a designated military service company, and the period from hiring to incorporation as a military service personnel has been shortened from "up to six months" to "within 100 days."

This is because the probation period at designated companies is used to verify the candidate’s qualifications, but the incorporation process has been repeatedly extended without reasonable cause, leading to increased complaints and reports of unfair labor practices.

The Military Manpower Administration plans to revise related laws by the second half of next year and resolve inconveniences faced by military service personnel in the industrial support sector through updates to service guidelines and manuals in the first half.

Jeon Hyun-hee, Chairperson of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission, said, "This recommendation will greatly help alleviate difficulties faced by young people serving in research and industrial fields," adding, "We will continue to identify unfair cases and unreasonable laws and systems that concern young people and strive to improve systems from the perspective of proactive administration centered on the public."

Mo Jong-hwa, Commissioner of the Military Manpower Administration, stated, "It is meaningful to derive improvement measures for the practical rights protection of industrial support military service personnel through collaboration with the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission," and added, "We will faithfully implement the key recommendations to create an environment where industrial support military service personnel can serve stably."

The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission recommends improvements to unreasonable systems that cause corruption or public grievances to about 1,500 institutions including central administrative agencies, local governments, and public institutions. Since its establishment in 2008, the Commission has recommended about 900 system improvements, with an acceptance rate of 95.2% by institutions.