The 'Serving Day' When Leaders Buy Meals with Collected Fees Disappears

Joint Survey Results Announced by Ministry of the Interior and Safety and Others
91% of Respondents Say "Day to Serve Executives Is Unnecessary"
Follow-up Survey Planned After Efforts to Improve Executive Awareness

The government is taking steps to eradicate the so-called 'Day to Serve Executives,' where lower-ranking public officials pool their own money to provide meals for directors and department heads. This measure follows demands for prompt action during last year's National Assembly audit, and efforts will also be made to improve the awareness of executives, including agency heads.

According to government departments on the 16th, a joint survey conducted last November by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Ministry of Personnel Management on the 'Day to Serve Executives' found that 18.1% of all respondents (10.1% in central government, 23.9% in local governments) reported experiencing the 'Day to Serve Executives' within the past year.

This survey was conducted to grasp the current situation and prepare improvement measures amid growing awareness of the need to eliminate unreasonable practices within the public service. The survey was conducted via the 'e-Saram' system (central government) and the 'Insarang' system (local governments) targeting central and local government officials, with a total of 154,317 participants (64,968 central government, 89,349 local governments).

Among all respondents, 91% answered that the 'Day to Serve Executives' is unnecessary. Additionally, 37.4% indicated that improving the awareness of executive public officials is necessary to eradicate the 'Day to Serve Executives.'

The frequency of experiencing the 'Day to Serve Executives' was highest at 46.1% for 1 to 2 times per month in central administrative agencies, and 45.9% for 1 to 2 times per week in local governments. The executives involved were mostly department heads (kwajang level) at 57.0%, and the main reason cited for the continuation of this practice was that it is a long-standing custom (37.8%).

Based on the survey results, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety will hold a countermeasure meeting today with the Ministry of Personnel Management and the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission, targeting organizational culture departments of central and local governments. The meeting will share the survey results and seek ways to eradicate this practice.

To swiftly eliminate the 'Day to Serve Executives,' efforts will first focus on improving the awareness of executives, including agency heads, followed by a guidance period and a subsequent follow-up survey. Furthermore, the government-wide organizational culture innovation group composed of junior officials, called 'Organizational Culture Refresh (F5),' will provide the 'Top 10 Recommendations for Organizational Culture Innovation' they have selected, urging each agency to implement them.

Hwang Myeong-seok, Director of the Government Innovation Bureau, stated, "This survey revealed that the 'Day to Serve Executives' still remains as a custom in some organizations," adding, "We will actively improve this outdated and inappropriate practice together with related agencies."