Gwangju Labor Office, Special Inspection on Fraudulent Claims of 'Unemployment and Parental Leave'

Implemented for 3 months until January 31 next year
Voluntary reporters exempt from additional collection and criminal punishment

The Gwangju Regional Employment and Labor Office (Director Lee Seong-ryong) announced on the 13th that it will conduct a special inspection on fraudulent claims of unemployment benefits and parental leave allowances until January 31 next year.

The inspection targets cases such as falsely reporting employment insurance eligibility at workplaces run by relatives to receive unemployment benefits or parental leave allowances, or when an acquaintance applies for unemployment benefits on behalf of someone staying abroad.

Those caught committing fraud will be required to return the full amount of unemployment benefits and parental leave allowances paid, and may face additional charges up to five times the amount fraudulently claimed, as well as criminal penalties.

Voluntary reporters of fraudulent claims may be exempted from the additional charges up to five times the amount, and considering the severity of the crime such as the amount fraudulently claimed and the number of offenses, criminal penalties (imprisonment up to three years or fines up to 30 million KRW) may also be waived.

Additionally, whistleblowers reporting fraudulent claims will have their confidentiality protected, and if the investigation confirms fraud, they will receive a reward of 20% of the fraudulent amount up to an annual limit of 5 million KRW for parental leave and unemployment benefits, and 30% of the fraudulent amount up to an annual limit of 30 million KRW for fraudulent claims related to employment stabilization and vocational skill development projects.

Lee Seong-ryong, Director of the Gwangju Regional Employment and Labor Office, stated, “We will strengthen prevention and crackdown activities on fraudulent claims to ensure that the employment insurance fund contributed by employers and workers does not harm the public.”