Nowon District Office Chaos... Voices for Restoring Public Authority Grow Amid Pregnant Female Employees' Extreme Stress Complaints

Last year alone, a 7.4 billion won deficit; this year, due to the impact of COVID-19, most facilities closed, causing a monthly 500 million won deficit at Nowon-gu Service Corporation (formerly Nowon-gu Facilities Corporation); union demands include extending retirement age to 65, leading to sit-in protests and drinking parties at the district office; Mayor Oh Seung-rok has been unable to enter his office for 50 days; Nowon-gu office employees face extreme work fatigue; calls for restoring public authority are growing louder.

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Nowon District Office has become a chaotic scene.

Public facilities have turned into a lawless zone(?), and voices calling for the restoration of public authority are growing louder.

Nowon District (Mayor Oh Seung-rok) filed a provisional injunction to ban assemblies and demonstrations on July 24, followed by a complaint on July 31 with the Seoul Northern District Court for violation of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes, including violent acts.

The Nowon District Service Corporation union launched a general strike demanding the conversion of 157 indefinite-term contract workers with guaranteed retirement age to “regular positions” and the extension of the retirement age to 65 for about 50 employees engaged in cleaning, sanitation, and security duties.

The union staged a surprise occupation of the first-floor lobby of the government building on the afternoon of June 24. They lifted the occupation on June 29 and continued their rally on the road in front of the district office but illegally reoccupied the lobby on July 29.

Additionally, since June 25, they have been camping out with mattresses in the fifth-floor corridor where the mayor’s office is located.

The Nowon District Office building is in disarray. Folk protest songs are playing through large speakers installed by the union in front of the building, and about 70 union members wearing red vests are sitting closely packed in the first-floor lobby, loudly chanting slogans.

Residents visiting the district office are also greatly inconvenienced. Many hesitate to enter due to union members blocking the pathways.

Moreover, on the night of July 29, when the union resumed their overnight sit-in, they held a drinking party in the district office lobby.

A district office employee said, “Not only did they illegally occupy a public office visited by about 5,000 people daily, but I cannot understand how they could openly hold a drinking party in the lobby where night-shift employees come and go.”

After a month of ongoing sit-ins, district office operations are nearly paralyzed. Employees are becoming exhausted. Pregnant female employees, in particular, are reporting extreme stress.

One female employee shared, “The loudspeaker noise that starts early in the morning causes vibrations that I can feel in my body every time I pass by. For the sake of the fetus, I wait for the sound to quiet down before going out or avoid the area entirely by using the underground entrance,” expressing her difficulties.

The Nowon District Service Corporation is a public enterprise under Nowon District responsible for managing and operating the cultural and sports center, parking lots, and various convenience facilities within the district. In 2017, Nowon District became the first in the nation to convert non-regular workers to indefinite-term contract workers with retirement age guaranteed until 60.

However, regarding the union’s demands for converting 157 indefinite-term contract workers to regular positions and extending the retirement age to 65 for about 50 workers in cleaning, security, and sanitation roles after three years, Nowon District stated, “Accepting the union’s demands would require an additional annual budget of 2 billion KRW, approximately 12.7 million KRW per person, which is an excessive demand given the financial conditions with a fiscal independence rate of 15.8%, the lowest among Seoul’s 25 autonomous districts.”

The district also said that extending the retirement age is not a matter to be decided unilaterally by the mayor but “should be approached through public discourse as a social consensus and a national-level decision.” However, they expressed willingness to improve treatment in areas where they can empathize.

The Nowon District Service Corporation recorded a deficit of 7.4 billion KRW last year, and this year, due to the impact of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), most facilities have been closed, resulting in a monthly deficit of 500 million KRW.

Nowon District held 11 rounds of collective bargaining and 5 mediation meetings with the union from January 29 to last month’s 11th, discussing 30 union demands including the conversion of indefinite-term contract workers to regular positions and the extension of the retirement age to 65 for about 50 elderly-friendly job workers, but failed to reach an agreement.

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