Tomorrow, Elementary Care Workers Begin Strike... Ministry of Education Helpless

Teacher Substitutions Rejected by Teachers
Strike May Not End After One Day
Parents Complain "Had to Take Urgent Half-Day Off"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] As of the 5th, one day before the strike by elementary school care workers, the education authorities have yet to present any concrete measures. The Ministry of Education has prepared guidelines to deploy substitute teachers, but the teachers' side is resisting, refusing to take on the duties. The problem is that the strike may not end after just one day on the 6th.

According to the education sector on the 5th, out of about 13,000 care workers working at over 2,200 schools nationwide, approximately half, between 5,000 and 6,000, are expected to participate in the strike on the 6th. Care workers are personnel who manage elementary school students after school within the school premises. Currently, about 200,000 students use elementary care classrooms, with 80% of them being lower grades, specifically 1st and 2nd graders. Dual-income couples, low-income families, and single-parent households mainly use this service.

Ahead of the strike, the Ministry of Education and metropolitan and provincial education offices delivered guidelines to schools, including deploying regular teachers as substitutes. However, teacher organizations strongly criticized this, saying, "They are repeating irresponsible administration that makes teachers the scapegoats." They also argue that assigning teachers to care duties violates the Labor Union Act, but legal interpretations differ, causing confusion. Some schools are operating combined care classrooms or advising students to leave early. A parent in Geumcheon-gu said, "I received a text about the elementary care strike and hurriedly took a half-day off," adding, "I don't know if it will end after just one day."

The care workers have presented demands from both legal and policy perspectives. They call for the withdrawal of the "On-Jongil Dolbom Act (Special Act on the Operation and Support of the All-Day Care System)," which transfers the authority to operate elementary care to local governments for private consignment, and for full-time employment of 8 hours. The On-Jongil Dolbom Act aims to increase the number of children who can receive care from 330,000 in 2017 to 530,000 in 2022 and to integrate care services, which have been operated separately by the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health and Welfare, and Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, under local governments. Care workers oppose this, saying employment and treatment will become unstable and care policies will be disrupted by private consignment. They also demand that the current part-time care be converted to full-time. The School Irregular Workers Solidarity, leading the strike, stated that if proper discussions do not proceed and only formal talks are repeated after the strike on the 6th, a second strike will be inevitable.

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