Ministry of Education "Stops Support for JeonGyoJo Office Rent"... JeonGyoJo Immediately Protests

Jeon-gyo-jo "Retaliatory Measures Related to the Education Minister's Accusation"

The Ministry of Education has reportedly notified the Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union (Jeon-gyo-jo) that it will stop supporting the rental fees for their office space.

According to the Ministry of Education and Jeon-gyo-jo on the 1st, the Ministry sent an official letter to Jeon-gyo-jo on the 31st of last month stating that it will discontinue support for the rental fees of the union's office spaces located on the 4th and 6th floors of a building in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul. The Ministry's letter reportedly cited the reason that Jeon-gyo-jo can secure office space through the Jeon-gyo-jo Hall, which the union purchased in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, in April of last year.

The Ministry of Education has been supporting Jeon-gyo-jo's office rental fees under the Labor Union Act. The monthly rent was 12.1 million KRW, amounting to an annual support of 145.2 million KRW. The Korea Federation of Teachers' Associations (Kyotong), which owns its own hall, does not receive separate rental support from the Ministry. The Federation of Teachers' Unions receives 10 million KRW monthly in rental support from the Ministry according to collective agreements.

The Ministry also requested the landlord of the building to terminate the lease contract. Considering the Lease Protection Act and other regulations, it is expected that Jeon-gyo-jo can use the office space until the end of this year.

In response, Jeon-gyo-jo issued a statement on the same day urging, "The Ministry of Education must immediately withdraw the notice to stop office support." Jeon-gyo-jo stated, "The Jeon-gyo-jo Hall was established with union dues collected over 30 years and funds raised from winning the Supreme Court ruling on the illegal union status, and it is used to support educational activities such as a history museum, research meetings, and small group gatherings."

They added, "Not supporting the union office not only suppresses union activities but also denies the union itself," and criticized, "We cannot dismiss the suspicion that this is a retaliatory official letter from the Ministry of Education related to Jeon-gyo-jo's filing of a complaint against the Minister of Education on August 28."

Previously, Jeon-gyo-jo filed a complaint accusing Lee Ju-ho, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education, of abuse of authority regarding his mention of the possibility of illegal acts related to the teachers' planned collective leave on the 4th.