Prevent Suspension by Report Alone
Establish an 'Expert Review Council'
The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education announced that it will require an expert review stage to prevent indiscriminate suspension of teachers reported for child abuse.
On the morning of the 18th, the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education issued a statement saying, "In order to prevent teachers' legitimate educational activities from being restricted or infringed upon due to indiscriminate reports of child abuse, we plan to require an expert review stage when suspending teachers reported for child abuse."
According to Article 44-2 of the current Education Officials Act, "If the ability to perform duties is significantly lacking, or if a request for disciplinary action is pending, if charged with a criminal case, or if under investigation by the Board of Audit and Inspection or investigative agencies for serious misconduct such as bribery or sexual misconduct that makes normal work performance difficult," the appointing authority may implement suspension.
Suspension is a type of temporary removal from position, preventing the individual from performing duties, and results in disadvantages such as loss of pay and promotion, effectively constituting a personnel disadvantage.
The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education explained, "Until now, when issues such as child abuse or sexual misconduct arose requiring urgent separation from students or fellow staff, suspension was considered. In cases of suspension due to child abuse, the disciplinary level is very serious, requiring immediate separation or combined with sexual misconduct, and the disciplinary procedures are carried out accordingly."
However, they stated that they will no longer immediately initiate suspension procedures just because a report of child abuse has been made and investigative agencies have notified the start of an investigation. Instead, they plan to form an 'expert review committee' composed of relevant department officials, legal experts, and members of the respective school to analyze the case from the perspective of protecting educational activities and review the appropriateness of suspension.
This measure appears to have been taken in response to concerns raised by recent cases of various infringements on teachers' rights and the not insignificant number of false accusations following child abuse reports. According to data disclosed by Justice Party lawmaker Eun-Joo Lee on the 13th, based on information received from 16 metropolitan and provincial offices of education nationwide except Ulsan, there were 35 cases last year where education officials were suspended after child abuse reports, which is about 8% of the cases notified for investigation commencement.
Cho Hee-yeon, Superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, stated, "It is the right direction that teachers' guidance according to laws and school regulations should not be subject to the Child Abuse Punishment Act unless there is intentional or gross negligence, and local governments and investigative agencies should listen to the education office's opinion when investigating child abuse cases related to teachers' guidance."
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