Gwangsan District in Gwangju Puts Plan to Convert Welfare Facility Workers to Public Employees on Hold

Workers' Appeals and Council Concerns Lead to Reconsideration of October Open Recruitment
Current Employment Structure to Be Maintained Until Welfare Foundation Is Established

The Gwangsan District Office in Gwangju has decided to fully reconsider its plan to convert direct management welfare facility workers to permanent public employees. On July 2, the district announced, "We have decided to maintain the current employment arrangements until the establishment of the Welfare Foundation."

A view of the Gwangsan District Office in Gwangju.

Since March, Gwangsan District has been reviewing the conversion of staff to permanent public employees within the authorized workforce. This was intended to address organizational imbalance and inefficiency caused by different employment types, such as fixed-term and contract positions, even among workers in the same roles, including social workers. Accordingly, the district had been preparing to convert fixed-term and contract employees to permanent positions through an open recruitment process scheduled for October.

However, the employees have continued to call for organizational stability by maintaining the current employment types. On June 26, twenty fixed-term and contract employees submitted a petition to Gwangsan District, urging the district to devise measures for employment stability. The Gwangsan District Council also reportedly raised doubts about whether the open recruitment method could actually guarantee employment stability.

A district official stated, "We will maintain the current employment arrangements until the Welfare Foundation is established. After that, we will gather sufficient input from field workers and the council to develop effective measures for employment stability."