'Unfair Personnel Measures for Genuine Reasons'... Sungkonghoe Welfare Foundation Partially Accepts Human Rights Commission Recommendations

National Human Rights Commission building. Photo by Human Rights Commission

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] The National Human Rights Commission announced on the 24th that the Anglican Church of Korea Seoul Diocese Social Welfare Foundation partially accepted the recommendation to issue a warning and conduct human rights education for a welfare facility for the disabled that had taken unfair personnel measures such as salary reduction due to a complaint.

The Human Rights Commission disclosed the response from the Anglican Church of Korea Seoul Diocese Social Welfare Foundation in accordance with the National Human Rights Commission Act, stating, "It is necessary to prepare measures against inappropriate exercise of authority by the facility head, including unfair personnel measures based on complaints, and to implement active measures related to this."

Earlier, in August last year, the Human Rights Commission recommended the chairman of the Anglican Church of Korea Seoul Diocese Social Welfare Foundation, the higher authority, to issue a warning to the head of the welfare facility for the disabled who was the subject of the complaint. Additionally, it recommended preparing measures including conducting human rights education for all employees at all social welfare facilities operated by the Anglican Church of Korea Seoul Diocese Social Welfare Foundation to prevent recurrence of the same behavior.

In response, the Anglican Church of Korea Seoul Diocese Social Welfare Foundation reportedly replied that it conducted human rights education for employees of its affiliated facilities. However, it also replied that issuing a warning to the subject of the complaint was not possible because the relevant welfare facility for the disabled had been closed.

The Human Rights Commission stated, "Although the subject of the complaint is a priest belonging to the Anglican Church of Korea Seoul Diocese, the operating entity of the social welfare foundation, no warning or human rights education was conducted for the subject of the complaint on the grounds that the facility was closed," adding, "Conducting human rights education only for employees of affiliated social welfare facilities means that only part of the recommendation was accepted."