Gwangju Seo-gu Council Urges 'Normalization of Employment in the Public Sector'

Kim Kyunho: "The Public Sector Must Guarantee Workers' Rights"

The Gwangju Seo-gu Council announced on December 22 that, during the 3rd plenary session of the 2nd regular meeting of its 336th session held on December 19, it presented a proposal urging the 'normalization of employment in the public sector,' with Councilor Kim Kyunho as the representative.

Gwangju Seo-gu Council, Representative Councilor Kim Kyunho Urges 'Normalization of Employment in the Public Sector'. Provided by Gwangju Seo-gu Council

Councilor Kim Kyunho pointed out, "Contract terms of less than one year to avoid severance pay and contracts of less than two years to evade the obligation to convert to permanent employment are now widespread in the public sector, beyond just the private sector."

He continued, "The repeated use of short-term contracts for regular work and the non-payment of retirement benefits in the public sector, which are structurally creating unreasonable wage disparities, is a matter of trust and morality in the public sphere. The public sector is the area that should uphold the intent of laws and regulations most rigorously and serve as a standard for employment stability and respect for labor throughout society."

Accordingly, all members of the Gwangju Metropolitan City Seo-gu Council called for: ▲ a comprehensive survey on short-term and repeated employment contracts aimed at avoiding retirement benefits and the conversion to permanent employment; ▲ the establishment of common guidelines and a management and oversight system to normalize public sector employment; and ▲ a comprehensive revision of relevant systems, budget, and personnel management standards to ensure the substantive protection of labor rights.

Finally, Councilor Kim expressed hope that "this proposal will become a practical step toward realizing employment normalization in the public sector, thereby fostering a culture of respect for labor across society."

Previously, the Ministry of Employment and Labor revised and announced guidelines (in November 2020) stipulating that employees engaged in regular and ongoing work should be hired as permanent staff. While these guidelines were intended to enhance job security and protect the working conditions of fixed-term employees, there have been ongoing concerns that, in practice, both the private and public sectors have been using contracts of less than two years to avoid converting workers to permanent status, resulting in unintended side effects.

Regarding such discrimination against non-regular workers, it was recently reported that President Lee Jaemyung, during a Cabinet meeting on December 9, stated, "If job security is low, wages should be higher," and instructed officials to ensure that no government departments are engaging in deceptive hiring practices to avoid paying severance benefits.