Gangdong-gu Labor Rights Center Provides Free Psychological Counseling Support for Workers

[Seoul District News] Guro-gu, Major Cleanup of Mokgamcheon, Dorimcheon, and Anyangcheon

[Asia Economy Reporter Jong-il Park] Gangdong-gu, Seoul (Mayor Lee Jeong-hoon) is conducting a free psychological counseling program for workers.

The Gangdong-gu Labor Rights Center has been providing free mental health services for workers physically and mentally exhausted since 2019. So far, 818 people have participated in 714 sessions of mental health checkups and psychological counseling, and 597 people have joined 51 sessions of the mental healing program, receiving great responses.

The main topics of psychological counseling were job stress (46.9%) as the most common, followed by emotional labor (23.9%), aptitude and career path (6.2%), and workplace harassment and power abuse (4.4%), indicating the necessity of mental health service support for workers.

This year, the district will continue to operate psychological counseling projects to protect and restore workers' mental health and will conduct various healing programs tailored to workers' needs.

Eligible participants are workers residing in Gangdong-gu or working at workplaces located in Gangdong-gu. Up to 10 sessions of psychological counseling, various themed healing programs, and stress education are provided free of charge.

Last year, programs were conducted on diverse and interesting topics such as 'workplace communication,' 'horticultural therapy,' 'aromatherapy,' and 'stress management.' A satisfaction survey on individual psychological counseling and mental healing programs showed that all participants were generally very satisfied, and all expressed willingness to participate in other programs, showing positive responses.

Going forward, the district plans to develop more innovative programs reflecting participants' diverse opinions and requests. Based on the participant database, it will produce materials such as emotional labor, stress symptoms and self-relief methods, mental health kits, and mental health guides to reduce the burden and prejudice against psychological counseling.

Additionally, to allow more workers to benefit regardless of location or time, online counseling and night counseling (operating Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6 to 9 p.m.) will be provided to make psychological counseling more accessible and approachable. The district also plans to conduct online mental health checkups (QR) targeting various groups such as healthcare workers exhausted from COVID-19 duties, social welfare workers, young workers, and vulnerable workers.

Program details and schedules can be found on the Gangdong-gu Labor Rights Center website. For more information, inquiries can be made to the Gangdong-gu Labor Rights Center.

The Gangdong-gu Labor Rights Center opened in 2019 as the first directly managed institution nationwide capable of handling comprehensive administration including labor affairs, jobs, welfare, housing, and finance all in one place, making it the largest local government labor-related institution. The center has resident lawyers, labor attorneys, and nationally certified psychological counselors who work together to address workers' difficulties, ensuring psychological counseling is always available whenever workers need it.

Guro-gu (Mayor Lee Sung) has launched a large-scale riverbank cleanup to welcome the new spring.

On the 31st, Guro-gu announced, "We conducted a joint cleanup of river facilities to collect trash and pollutants carried downstream during winter and to create a clean waterfront environment."

The cleanup was carried out on Mokgamcheon on March 16, Dorimcheon on the 23rd, and Anyangcheon on the 30th. Employees from the Flood Control Division, Sports Promotion Division, Green City Division, and temporary workers participated to remove floating trash from shallow sections of waterways and slopes. They also collected trash from riverbanks and embankments, removed dust, eliminated weeds and hazardous trees around sports facilities, and conducted disinfection work. Deep and fast-flowing sections will be cleaned during river dredging by specialized companies.

Guro-gu plans to continuously clean facilities along Anyangcheon, Mokgamcheon, Dorimcheon, Oryucheon, and Yeokgokcheon within the district. Sports facilities and landscaping/park facilities within the rivers will be cleaned by the respective facility management departments. Temporary and public work employees will clean fences, railings, bollards, and riverbank trash. Underwater work such as drainage channels and slopes will be carried out by partner companies.

For a pleasant river environment, Guro-gu has been conducting biweekly joint public-private cleanup activities along riverbanks with the Guro Agenda 21 Action Group from October 5 to November 4 last year. Additionally, odor reduction devices have been installed along Dorimcheon.

A Guro-gu official said, "The riverbanks have been cleaned beautifully to welcome the new spring through this cleanup. We will continue steady purification activities and cleaning so residents can comfortably rest by the riverbanks and strive to create a clean environment."