Government Recommends Dismissal of Public Institution Heads with Poor Performance Including Post Office Logistics Support Group... First Time in 6 Years

2020 Public Institution Management Performance Evaluation Results
'Land Speculation' LH Drops 3 Levels...Number of Institutions with Poor Ethical Management Increases by 7
Post Office Logistics Support Group, Childcare Promotion Agency, Construction Equipment Safety Management Agency, Health Promotion Development Institute, etc. Subject to Head Dismissal

Ando-geol, the 2nd Vice Minister of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, is briefing on the 2020 public institution management performance evaluation results at the Government Seoul Office Building on the afternoon of the 18th.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Son Seon-hee] The government has recommended the dismissal of heads of public institutions who were evaluated as underperforming last year for the first time in six years. The targets include a total of four institutions: the Post Logistics Support Group and the Korea Childcare Promotion Institute, which received the lowest grade (E) last year, as well as the Korea Construction Machinery Safety Management Institute and the Korea Health Promotion Development Institute, which received a D grade for two consecutive years.

On the 18th, the Ministry of Economy and Finance announced that it held the 7th Public Institution Management Committee chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Hong Nam-ki, where it deliberated and resolved the '2020 Public Institution Management Performance Evaluation Results and Follow-up Measures' containing these details. This year, management performance evaluations were conducted for a total of 131 public enterprises and quasi-governmental institutions, and audit performance evaluations were conducted for 59 institutions.

As a result, the comprehensive grades were as follows: Excellent (A) institutions numbered 23 (17.6%), Good (B) 52 (39.7%), Average (C) 35 (26.7%), Poor (D) 18 (13.7%), and Very Poor (E) 3 (2.3%). No Outstanding (S) grade has been awarded for 10 years.

Meanwhile, the number of institutions receiving the lowest grade, E, increased to three, up from one in 2019. The Korea Racing Authority, Post Logistics Support Group, and Korea Childcare Promotion Institute received E grades. The government recommends dismissal for institutions that received an E grade last year or a Poor (D) grade for two consecutive years; however, institutions whose heads’ terms expired (Korea Racing Authority, Human Resources Development Service of Korea, Korea Elevator Safety Agency, Korea Power Exchange) were excluded from this target.

Regarding the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), which attracted attention due to the 'land speculation' scandal, it received a 'Poor (D)' evaluation, the fifth out of six grades. It had received an A grade in 2019 but fell more than three grades in one year. Accordingly, the performance bonuses for the LH head and executives will not be paid in full.

Despite difficulties due to COVID-19, institutions that made efforts in leading roles and management improvements, such as supporting affected companies and digital innovation, received relatively good evaluations. These include the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service, which resolved mask supply issues early during the COVID-19 outbreak, and the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund, which provided a record-high guarantee supply of 55.4 trillion won to small and medium-sized enterprises affected by COVID-19.

In a briefing on the evaluation results, Deputy Minister of Economy and Finance Ahn Do-geol explained, "This year, especially in light of the LH misconduct, we conducted ethics management evaluations more strictly than in the past," adding, "We imposed strict penalties on illegal and unfair acts such as real estate speculation, power abuse, and sexual misconduct, and actively reflected the results of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission’s integrity and anti-corruption policy evaluations as well as the Audit Board’s findings in the evaluations."