Why Did Seogangseok, Mayor of Songpa-gu, Personally Oversee the Treatment of MZ Employees?

Songpa-gu Introduces Customized Welfare to Capture the Hearts of MZ Generation Public Officials!

Housing, Marriage, Health, Communication... Efforts to Provide Practical Solutions to the Concerns of the Younger Generation

Diverse Support Including Psychological Counseling to Prevent New Public Officials from Leaving the Public Service

Seo Gang-seok, Mayor of Songpa-gu: “I will personally oversee the improvement of treatment for employees below grade 7”

A public official A (26), who started working at Songpa-gu Office as their first job, experienced the daunting challenge of moving alone to Seoul and finding a jeonse (long-term deposit) rental house while struggling with high housing prices and loan interest from the very beginning of living independently. Fortunately, starting this year, the burden of loan interest has been eased through the ‘Songpa-gu Housing Stability Support Project for Homeless Public Officials,’ which has somewhat improved their financial situation.

This is a representative example of the new welfare project that Songpa-gu (Mayor Seo Gang-seok) is promoting for MZ generation public officials.

The district aims to understand the realistic concerns of new public officials and provide practical support that they can truly feel as a change.

Recently, the resignation rate of MZ generation public officials within five years of appointment has significantly increased. Last year, the resignation rate of MZ generation public officials within five years of appointment among Seoul city officials approached 8.6%, nearly doubling compared to 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic. Songpa-gu also recorded a resignation rate of 7.5% under the same conditions last year.

Seo Gang-seok, Mayor of Songpa-gu, said, “The main reasons for new public officials leaving the public service are low salaries and public official pension reforms. In the past, increasing welfare for public officials was often viewed negatively, but since the departure of young public officials has become a social issue, actively addressing it will enhance public service competitiveness and serve as a foundation for servant administration for residents.”

Accordingly, Songpa-gu decided that the mayor will personally take charge of ‘welfare for public officials below grade 7.’ This goes beyond one-time, showy measures and operates a ‘useful employee welfare system’ that fills the essential needs of employees.

Seogang-seok, Mayor of Songpa District Office, is having a communication session with employees after working hours.

First, the district introduced the ‘MZ Customized Promotion’ in collaboration with local companies starting this year. It provides practical welfare benefits such as the ‘Housing Stability Support Project for Homeless Public Officials,’ which partially supports housing loan interest for homeless public officials; the ‘Wedding Hall Promotion (Song-Ye-P)’ for public officials of marriageable age who need it most; and the ‘Gym Promotion (Song-Help)’ to take care of employees’ health.

B, a staff member (33) at a local community center, who contracted a wedding hall through the ‘Songpa-gu Wedding Hall Promotion’ at a price more than 15% lower than the market rate, said that the preparation for marriage became much easier thanks to this. B expressed satisfaction, saying, “It seems like a valuable benefit for working people of marriageable age.”

C (31), who recently changed career paths from a private company to public service, said, “I usually work overtime many days, so on days I leave early, I want to invest in self-development. Now that there is a gym discount program called ‘Song-Help,’ I plan to challenge myself with exercise.”

Additionally, the district invites culinary experts to provide employees with a hearty meal. They hold a ‘Cooking Class for Employees’ using the cafeteria during idle hours to resolve nutritional imbalances for single-person households and create opportunities for communication among employees.

Moreover, they have not forgotten to care for the mental health of frontline workers exhausted by malicious complaints. They operate a mind and body care program, offering online mental health assessments for all employees, one-on-one psychological counseling with experts, and on-site physical therapy. If an employee receives treatment at a specialized hospital due to physical or mental damage, medical expenses up to 200,000 KRW per person are also supported.

Seo Gang-seok, Mayor of Songpa-gu, stated, “I will take the lead in improving organizational culture so that MZ generation public officials, who will shape the future of Songpa-gu, can grow excellently within the public service and fully demonstrate their capabilities.”