Inauguration Ceremony of the Part-Time Civil Servants Labor Union Held

National Part-Time Public Officials Labor Union to Join Korean Confederation of Trade Unions Public Officials Labor Union Federation on the 18th

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] On the 18th at 3 PM, Jeong Seong-hye, Chairperson of the National Part-Time Public Officials Labor Union, submitted an application to join the Federation of Public Officials Labor Unions under the Korean Federation of Trade Unions (KFTU), the largest labor union with 1.15 million members nationwide, and held an inauguration ceremony at 7 PM in the large conference room on the 6th floor of the KFTU building.

Kim Hwang-woo, Secretary General of the Part-Time Labor Union, said in his opening remarks, “Part-time public officials work under harsh conditions, and we launched this labor union to raise our voices when we are unwell. We view and respect each part-time public official as an individual, communicating with them and making reasonable demands for the system to be operated without discrimination. However, even though the system has changed, the rigid organization structured around 40-hour workers remains entrenched in the public service, revealing the strength of established customs. Despite these difficulties and hardships, let us unite our will and hearts to passionately move forward for better treatment.”

Kim Hyun-jin, Chairperson of the Federation of Public Officials Labor Unions, encouraged, “Seeing the hand-held signs demanding equal holiday pay made me think about many things. We will mobilize all possible means within the federation to help improve the parts that are considered discriminatory.”

Ahn Seong-eun, Chairperson of the National Integrated Public Officials Labor Union, said, “The part-time public official system was flawed from the start. There was a promise to amend the law so that part-time public officials could receive the same benefits as regular public officials, but that promise has yet to be fulfilled. I am sorry for this and hope the promised time comes soon. I sincerely congratulate the inauguration ceremony.”

Lee Eun-joo of the Justice Party, and Lee Hae-sik and Lim Ho-seon of the Democratic Party of Korea congratulated the inauguration through video messages.

Lee Hae-sik, Member of the National Assembly from the Democratic Party of Korea (Seoul Gangdong-gu Eul), said, “Through meetings with the Integrated Public Officials Labor Union in 2020, I came to understand the difficulties and challenges faced by part-time public officials. Last year, I hosted a National Assembly video forum to abolish fractional quotas and introduced a bill to amend the National Public Officials Act to eliminate fractional quotas. I hope the launch of the National Part-Time Public Officials Labor Union will serve as a new turning point for changes related to the part-time public official recruitment system. As a member of the National Assembly’s Public Administration and Security Committee, I will do my best to work with you to resolve the remaining issues one by one,” he said in a congratulatory video.

Jeong Seong-hye, Chairperson of the Part-Time Labor Union, said in her inaugural address, “I prepared today’s event as a ‘struggle ceremony’ to mark the start of a new fight. Part-time public officials are the underdogs in the public service, but under the umbrella of the ‘Part-Time Labor Union,’ we are by no means weak. We will reject outdated customs and work with the KFTU Federation of Public Officials to improve issues such as the non-granting of part-time rights due to the appointing authority’s discretionary abuse and the flawed system that divides people into fractional hours (20 hours (0.5), 35 hours (0.875)) based on working hours.”