KTU: "A Step Backward Against the Times... Infringement on Teachers' Rights and Labor Rights"
Provincial Office of Education: "Measures to Reduce School Administrative Work... Reflecting On-Site Demands"
A sharp difference of opinion has emerged between the Jeonnam branch of the Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union (KTU) and the Jeonnam Provincial Office of Education regarding the organizational restructuring plan scheduled to take effect on July 1. The KTU is protesting, claiming that the restructuring infringes on teachers' educational and labor rights, while the provincial education office argues that it is an unavoidable measure to reduce administrative burdens on schools.
On June 5, the Jeonnam branch of the KTU issued a statement asserting, "This organizational restructuring infringes on educational and labor rights," and insisted that "all unnecessary administrative tasks must be completely restructured." The union criticized performance-oriented open projects, expositions, and the assignment of administrative tasks in violation of collective agreements, emphasizing that "a comprehensive review, including possible abolition, and measures to prevent recurrence are necessary."
Regarding the integration of the Democratic Citizenship Education Team, Human Rights Protection Team, Records Management Team, and Civil Complaints Team, the union stated, "The functions of democratic citizenship education, protection of teachers' rights, and response to civil complaints will inevitably be weakened. The restructuring plan runs counter to the current trends of the times." They further argued, "Contrary to the explanation that staff from the provincial office will be reassigned to education support offices, there is widespread suspicion on the ground that the real purpose is to expand the administrative organization and create more promotion opportunities."
The KTU identified the tasks teachers most wish to see reduced as ▲preparing documents for audits, ▲staging events for display purposes, and ▲responding to civil complaints, and called for a complete reconsideration of the restructuring plan.
In contrast, the Jeonnam Provincial Office of Education countered, "This organizational restructuring is an unavoidable measure to allow teachers to focus on teaching," and argued, "In fact, the main office organization has been reduced, and the direction is to lessen the administrative burden on schools." The office explained that the core of the restructuring is not changes to the main office or education support offices, but rather the redistribution of unnecessary administrative tasks to education support offices to reduce the burden on schools, reflecting longstanding demands from the field.
In particular, the office stated, "We have reflected the results of field opinion surveys conducted in 2024 to reduce administrative work, as well as a survey carried out in March of this year. Many teachers participated in the restructuring task force and provided input, and 63% of all survey respondents were teachers."
Regarding areas with heavy workloads for teachers, such as field trips, the office said, "We have prepared practical measures to reduce the burden, such as support for preliminary site visits and the provision of standard reports and task directives," and added, "Improvements to information systems are being considered as a mid- to long-term task." Addressing concerns about the weakening of democratic citizenship education functions, the office responded, "We have reorganized the existing 'Student Life Education Division' into the 'Democratic Life Education Division' to enhance work connectivity, and are operating the integrated division without reducing staff," emphasizing that "claims of weakened functions are not true."
Regarding the criticism of a 'unilateral decision,' the office stated, "Not only teachers, but also general staff and union-recommended members participated in the task force, and the Jeonnam Teachers' Union has positively evaluated the restructuring plan." In response to criticism of 'expanding the administrative organization,' the office explained, "We have merged and abolished two divisions and two teams at the main office, reduced a total of 31 positions including two superintendent-level officials and two general staff executives, and reassigned 72 people to education support offices."
A representative from the provincial education office stated, "This restructuring of the support system is a starting point for creating an environment where teachers can focus on education," and added, "We will continue to gather feedback from the field and identify further tasks to reduce administrative work in schools."
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