The Incheon International Airport Corporation Crisis Spreads to the National Assembly... Opposition's 'Attack' vs Ruling Party's 'Defense'

United Future Party "Moonppa Chance, Youth Despair"
Democratic Party "Fake News, Public Misunderstanding"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporters Lim Chun-han and Jeon Jin-young] The United Future Party and the People's Party have actively turned the controversy over the conversion of security screening personnel at Incheon International Airport Corporation (Inkukgong) into regular employees into a major issue. The opposition parties have once again raised the value of fairness following last year's 'Cho Kuk incident,' while the ruling Democratic Party, cornered, appears to be belatedly trying to contain the situation.

On the 26th, Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People's Party, said at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly, "The root cause is President Moon Jae-in. President Moon gave short-term political publicity and popularity-driven orders without fundamental measures to resolve the dual labor market, and the labor market order was shaken and thrown into chaos by bureaucrats and agency heads competing for loyalty." He criticized, "If everything is like a lottery and depends on luck, how can the despair of millions of young people who work diligently be compensated?" He added, "It is no different from the old days when the barracks visited by the division commander were decorated with the latest facilities, while other outdated facilities were neglected."

The United Future Party also targeted the government and ruling party, saying that the job ladder for young people has been taken away. Kim Jong-in, emergency committee chairman of the United Future Party, said the day before, "There is a procedural problem in converting non-regular workers to regular workers, which has caused frustration among those who study hard to get a job," and added, "They have no choice but to raise objections and resist." Kim Jae-seop, emergency committee member of the United Future Party, sharply criticized, "Young people who were frustrated by the 'Dad's Chance' in the Cho Kuk incident felt despair due to the 'Moonppa Chance' in the Inkukgong incident."

Lee Hae-chan, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is attending the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 22nd and delivering opening remarks. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

The Democratic Party hurriedly moved to manage the situation, saying there were aspects of misinformation. Lee Hae-chan, leader of the Democratic Party, said at the Supreme Council meeting that day, "(The Incheon Airport) regularization and other issues are causing public misunderstanding," and urged, "Please refrain from causing confusion among the public over such matters." Park Kwang-on, Supreme Council member of the Democratic Party, said, "It is turning into a conflict between non-regular workers and job seekers, both being the weaker party," and emphasized, "If the United Future Party truly wants to share the pain of youth, it should institutionalize the principle of equal pay for equal work even now." Kim Hae-young, Supreme Council member of the Democratic Party, said, "Fairness is an important factor regarding public institution employment," and added, "A delicate approach is required for the specific conversion method."

Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Du-kwan said on Facebook that day, "I understand the sense of deprivation faced by young people confronting a severe employment cliff. However, the logic that non-regular workers are snatching future jobs from job seekers is not only unfair but highly discriminatory," and argued, "It is rather unfair that those who studied a bit more and passed the written exam receive about twice the wages of non-regular workers after becoming regular employees. More than 200,000 people signed the national petition due to fake news by JoongAng, Chosun, and Dong-a newspapers attacking the government's public sector regularization policy."

Within the ruling party, there are also concerns that the Inkukgong incident could become an 'Achilles' heel' and negatively affect party approval ratings. A Democratic Party lawmaker said, "It is a recurring problem of a party unpopular among men in their 20s," expressing concern that the alienation of youth sentiment caused by the Cho Kuk incident might recur.

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