Seongdong-gu Expands Support for Childcare Assistant Teachers by Extending Working Hours by 2 Hours

District allocates 690 million KRW budget to extend assistant teachers' work by 2 hours, enabling a total of 8 hours; childcare helpers expanded to all daycare centers, supporting from meal preparation to cleaning

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Seongdong-gu (Mayor Jung Won-oh) will expand support activities for assistant teachers and childcare helpers to improve the working environment for childcare teachers starting from the new school term in March.

The existing basic working hours for assistant teachers are 4 hours per day, during which they perform roles such as assisting childcare teachers and substitute childcare, helping to reduce the workload of childcare teachers.

However, there have been ongoing complaints from the field that the short 4-hour work period makes it difficult to guarantee rest time amid increased workload.

Accordingly, the district secured a budget of 690 million KRW to extend the working hours for assistant teachers by 2 hours.

The support targets 136 assistant teachers at 132 daycare centers receiving assistant teacher support this year, and with the additional 2 hours of support from Seoul City included, assistant teachers will be able to work 4 more hours in total.

Additionally, childcare helpers will be supported at 111 daycare centers in the area. Childcare helpers, previously supported only at private and home daycare centers, will now be expanded to all daycare centers, and their duties will be broadened from meal preparation support to cleaning. This additional support for childcare helpers to meet daycare center demands is leading the way in creating an environment where daycare centers can focus solely on providing quality childcare.

Furthermore, efforts to actively improve the working environment continue, including holiday bonuses, treatment improvement funds, overtime pay support for daycare childcare teachers, as well as increased meal costs and additional support for assistant teachers.

Jung Won-oh, Mayor of Seongdong-gu, said, “Through this additional support for assistant teachers, I hope the working conditions for childcare teachers will improve and more detailed childcare services can be provided to children.” He added, “We will continue to listen to the voices from the childcare field and make every effort to create a childcare environment where both parents and children can feel safe.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.