Hired an Older Successor After Retirement Dismissal... Court Rules "Unfair Dismissal"

"Cannot Conclude Job Performance Is Difficult Based Solely on Age"

The court has ruled that terminating a contract conductor due to reaching retirement age and then hiring a successor who is even older constitutes unfair dismissal.

According to the legal community on December 29, the Seoul Administrative Court’s First Panel recently issued a partial ruling in favor of the plaintiff in a lawsuit filed by Mr. A against the Chairman of the Central Labor Relations Commission, seeking to overturn a retrial decision regarding the remedy for unfair dismissal.

Mr. A had worked as a contract conductor at Organization C, but was terminated on June 30, 2020, on the grounds of reaching retirement age. However, Organization C subsequently hired a new conductor who was older than Mr. A.

Mr. A applied for relief to the Labor Relations Commission, arguing that terminating the employment relationship solely due to retirement age was unfair. After his request was denied, he filed an administrative lawsuit.

The court sided with Mr. A. The panel stated, "It is difficult to conclude that merely being older makes it hard to perform the job," and added, "There is no evidence that Mr. A had poor work attitude or was involved in conflicts within the organization that would justify refusing to renew his contract." The court further noted, "Mr. A had no particular issues with his conducting ability or work performance during his previous tenure, and his relationships with the members were good, so there was a reasonable expectation for contract renewal."

Additionally, regarding the regulation cited by Organization C, which required ‘open recruitment after discontinuing contract renewal,’ the court pointed out, "This regulation was introduced after Mr. A had already left and cannot be applied retroactively." The panel concluded, "Since the termination of employment on the grounds of retirement age lacked rationality, and considering that a successor who was even older was hired, this dismissal constitutes unfair dismissal."