"Youth Public Officials Leaving Due to Minimum Wage Level"…Public Officials Union Holds 'Wage Increase' Rally

Urging a Fixed Base Salary Increase of 313,000 Won

On the 6th, public servant labor unions argued that wages and various allowances for public servants should be increased to prevent young public servants from leaving their positions.

On the afternoon of the 6th, flags were entering at the general rally to demand a wage increase for public officials held near the Government Seoul Office.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Korea Public Service and Transport Workers' Union, the Federation of Korean Government Employees' Unions, the Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union, the National Democratic Post Office Headquarters, the Federation of Education Office Labor Unions, and the National Police Workplace Council held a "General Rally to Achieve Public Servant Wage Increases" near the Government Seoul Office in the afternoon. They stated, "Although living costs continue to rise, public servants are threatened in their right to live due to low wage increase rates," and "Young public servants, who are the future of the public service community, are leaving their positions because their salaries are at the minimum wage level."

They said, "Public servants and teachers, once prestigious professions, have now fallen into a situation where they must talk about survival due to low wages, malicious complaints, and poor working conditions," and pointed out, "Although public servants are said to have job security, young public servants are asking to be allowed to work part-time or have side jobs because there is no actual income in their 'iron rice bowl'."

They added, "The Ministry of Strategy and Finance, wielding unchecked power, is nullifying even the decisions of the Public Servant Salary Committee and cutting budgets in the public sector, leading to a decline in the quality of administrative services," and said, "The current committee, which is merely an advisory body, should be transformed into an organization with real decision-making authority, and the decisions made by the committee should be reflected in the budget."

They demanded ▲a fixed basic wage increase of 313,000 won for public servants ▲an increase in seniority allowances for lower-ranking positions ▲an 80,000 won increase in fixed meal allowances to ensure a 10,000 won lunch cost ▲and a 30,000 won increase in position allowance.