Is It Reasonable to Use Decimal Points (0.5·0.875) for Part-Time Public Officials?

Administrative Safety Committee Members of the National Assembly Kim Hyung-dong, Lee Eun-joo, Lee Hae-sik, and Lim Ho-sun Host a Forum Featuring Jeong Seong-hye, Head of the Part-Time Selection Headquarters: "Demand for Abolishing Fractional Quotas and Granting Time Selection Rights to Stakeholders"

Jung Sung-hye, Head of Division

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Jeong Seong-hye, Head of the Time-Selective Division of the National Integrated Public Officials Labor Union, attended the "Video Forum for the Abolition of the Decimal Quota System for Time-Selective Public Officials Treated as 0.5 or 0.875" held at 3 p.m. on the 26th in the Korean Federation of Trade Unions main conference room, demanding the government’s strong commitment to improving the time-selective public official system.

On that day, Head Jeong criticized, “Although the Ministry of Personnel Management and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety have the authority to conduct surveys on obstacles to time-selective work and recommend improvements to relevant institutions based on the results, they still calculate one person as a decimal point according to working hours (0.5 for 20 hours, 0.875 for 35 hours), and due to the Public Officials Appointment Decree clause that does not grant time-selection rights to the individual, the head of the institution assigns 20 hours during parental leave, among other various issues reported from the field. Despite demands for improvement recommendations, they remain inactive,” emphasizing this point.

Ahn Seong-eun, Chairman of the National Integrated Public Officials Labor Union, stated, “The abolition of the decimal quota system and granting of time-selection rights for time-selective public officials should be addressed as part of public service reform. A fundamental redesign is necessary so that this system can be reborn as lifecycle-based jobs aligned with its original purpose. Furthermore, related ministries must actively work on legal amendments and institutional improvements to prevent existing time-selective public officials from becoming further discouraged. Additionally, a constructive labor-management relationship framework should be reestablished to ensure that the voices of the stakeholders are reflected during this reform process.”

The lawmakers of the Administrative Safety Committee who hosted this forum declared their commitment to improving the time-selective public official system, which the government has created but not taken responsibility for, as follows.

Lee Hae-sik of the Democratic Party of Korea criticized, “As the system has been operated, previously unnoticed problems have begun to surface. The ‘decimal quota system,’ which manages personnel by representing one worker as 0.5 or 0.875 simply because their working hours do not reach 40 hours per week, is a prime example.”

He added, “Since the system does not treat one person as one person, it is difficult to prepare proper plans and alternatives even when problems are found. We must remember that workers are individuals, not just numbers in a ledger. Without basing the system on people, no rational system can be properly operated. Focusing only on ledger numbers prevents a full understanding of the individual circumstances of each worker hidden behind them. I will continue to pay attention and support so that the time-selective public official system operates properly and the treatment of time-selective public officials can be improved.”

Kim Hyung-dong of the People Power Party said, “I hope that through this timely forum, diverse opinions will be gathered to devise wise measures for improving the treatment of time-selective public officials, and I will also do my best to resolve issues for protecting your rights.”

Lee Eun-joo of the Justice Party, who attended via Zoom, stated, “A thorough survey on the working conditions of time-selective public officials is necessary, along with active measures from the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Ministry of Personnel Management to improve discriminatory factors against them. I hope they will do their best to listen fully to the voices of the stakeholders and create conditions where they can work with pride in the public service.”

Lim Ho-seon of the Democratic Party of Korea said, “The time-selective public official system was introduced to support work-family balance and increase employment rates, but due to poor working conditions and institutional limitations, the original purpose has been undermined, with a turnover rate rising to 40% and no recruitment since 2018, leading to ongoing complaints from the field. The abolition bill for the decimal quota system currently being prepared in my office aims to move away from the system that regarded workers as 0.5 or 0.875 based on working hours, treating time-selective public officials as one full quota. This is expected to improve discrimination within the public service and enable time-selective public officials to become responsible public servants dedicated to serving the people.”

Professor Kim Seong-hee of Korea University Graduate School of Labor, who presented at the forum, proposed four improvement measures for the time-selective public official system: ▲ resolving discriminatory factors and ensuring sustainability ▲ integration into the full-time public official system ▲ integration with time-selective converted public officials ▲ resolving status-based discrimination. To achieve this, the following improvements are necessary: first, reform of the allowance system that mistakenly applies differences in working hours as differences in hourly wages; second, further improvement of excessive gaps in promotion period calculations; third, introduction of a work assignment negotiation and adjustment system combining labor time choice and job stability; fourth, abolition of the decimal quota system; fifth, granting of time-selection self-determination rights (15 to 35 hours per week).

Through this forum, the Integrated Union’s Time-Selective Division expects effects such as ▲ improvement of working conditions for time-selective public officials ▲ increased sense of belonging and morale ▲ normalization of personnel management and elimination of conflict factors within the organization ▲ enhancement of equity between time-selective and full-time public officials.

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