'Customer Satisfaction Manipulation' Korea Railroad Disciplinary Personnel Action Taken... Structural Innovation 추진

(Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Jiwon] Korea Railroad Corporation (KORAIL) has taken disciplinary actions, including the resignation of the Head of the Passenger Business Division, as follow-up measures for the employee customer satisfaction manipulation incident that occurred earlier this year.

On the 25th, KORAIL stated, "We deeply acknowledge the heavy responsibility regarding the Customer Satisfaction Index (PCSI) survey," and announced that it will undertake company-wide structural reforms along with personnel renewal to fundamentally resolve the issue.

First, disciplinary personnel actions were swiftly implemented concerning the customer satisfaction manipulation. The Head of the Passenger Business Division (Executive Director), who held overall responsibility for the customer satisfaction survey, was dismissed, and the Head of Customer Marketing and related Regional Headquarters (Western Seoul Metropolitan and Eastern Seoul Metropolitan Headquarters) were removed from their positions.

Earlier, following the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s audit results in April revealing the manipulation allegations as factual, KORAIL suspended two executives, including the then Seoul Headquarters Chief, and excluded seven employees from the relevant duties.

As additional investigations are still ongoing, further personnel measures will be taken based on future investigation results.

To revitalize the overall organizational atmosphere, a large-scale personnel reshuffle will also be pursued.

The successor to the Head of the Passenger Business Division will be appointed by selecting a candidate in accordance with relevant laws and procedures, prioritizing fairness and job ethics.

KORAIL appointed Lee Mincheol, Head of the Overseas Inter-Korean Railroad Project Team, as the Head of Customer Marketing, overseeing marketing and tourism businesses. Kim Jonghyun, Chief of the Secretariat, was appointed as the Chief Financial Officer overseeing finance and accounting, and Lee Seongwan, Chief Financial Officer, was appointed as the Head of the Overseas Inter-Korean Railroad Project Team responsible for international cooperation and overseas projects.

Ko Junyoung, Head of the Daegu Headquarters, was selected as the Head of the Technical Headquarters, overseeing vehicles, facilities, and electricity. Joo Yonghwan, Head of the Technical Headquarters, and Lee Yongwoo, Head of the Busan-Gyeongnam Headquarters, were appointed as the Heads of the Western and Eastern Seoul Metropolitan Headquarters, respectively.

To restore public trust, KORAIL will also promote organizational culture improvement and structural innovation. A concrete and practical roadmap applicable on-site will be prepared, centered on the recently launched 'Organizational Culture Innovation Committee,' which includes labor, management, and private experts.

Internal training to eradicate workplace corruption, power abuse, and sexual misconduct will be expanded, and an ethics management organization will be newly established with reinforced personnel.

To ensure management stability and efficiency, the consolidation of 12 regional headquarters nationwide will be actively pursued. Without distinction between headquarters and field offices, company-wide structural reforms will be implemented to optimize manpower and enhance organizational flexibility.

A dedicated organization, the 'Management Improvement Task Force (TF),' will be established to carry out these tasks.

Son Byungseok, President of KORAIL, said, "We will identify problems throughout the organization and push for bold reforms that cut to the bone to ensure that violations of fairness never happen again," adding, "All 30,000 employees will start again from the basics."

Meanwhile, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the 2019 customer satisfaction survey for KORAIL was conducted by the Korea Management Association Consulting at 25 train stations nationwide from January 13 to February 1 this year.

Among the 12 regional headquarters nationwide, employees from 8 regional headquarters participated in the survey while hiding their KORAIL employee status to receive higher performance evaluations and bonuses. The manipulated surveys accounted for 222 cases (15.4%) out of a total of 1,438.

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