Two Reports of 'Unfair Treatment During Field Training' Received... "Verbal Abuse and Reinstatement Measures for Trainees"

Vocational High School Interns' Unfair Treatment Report Center Receives Complaints of Verbal Abuse
"Student Reinstated, Searching for Another Internship Company"
Yeosu Fatal Accident, Follow-up Measures Including Fines for the Company Planned
Vocational High School On-site Training Improvement Plan to Be Announced Within the Year, Applied After March Next Year

On the 14th of last month, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Yoo Eun-hye received a report on the same-day school investigation findings from the joint investigation team on the vocational high school field training fatal accident at the Yeosu Office of Education and discussed future investigation plans and schedules.

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] The Ministry of Education has received reports of verbal abuse against interns after operating a reporting center for unfair treatment of interns following the death of an intern in Yeosu.

On the 8th, the Ministry of Education announced at a regular briefing that since the opening of the reporting center for unfair treatment of vocational high school interns on the 20th of last month, two cases of damage, including verbal abuse of interns and non-payment of allowances, have been reported.

An official from the Ministry of Education explained, "A report of verbal abuse against an intern was received, the person in charge apologized, the student was reinstated, and another internship site is being sought," adding, "Regarding the non-payment of allowances, there was a misunderstanding by the student as the payment was delayed due to the weekend."

When a report is received at the unfair treatment reporting center, the relevant circumstances are verified through the metropolitan and provincial offices of education, and with the cooperation of the Ministry of Employment and Labor, measures are taken against the internship company.

The Ministry of Education official said, "We provide reinstatement and psychological support, and if anonymous processing is possible, the reports are handled anonymously," adding, "Discussion with the Ministry of Employment and Labor is necessary regarding penalties for the companies involved."

Regarding the low number of reports, the official said, "This year, internships have been minimized, and there may have been concerns about disadvantages after reporting," adding, "As we are conducting inspections during the process of preparing system improvement plans, there will be a complementary effect, and we believe it is necessary to establish a system to operate the reporting center on a regular basis."

The Ministry of Education will soon take follow-up measures such as imposing fines on internship companies related to the Yeosu intern death incident.

In addition, a full survey of schools and companies and on-site internship guidance and inspections at the education office level will be completed by the end of this month. The Ministry of Education and metropolitan and provincial offices of education are conducting a full survey targeting schools and companies where 12,500 students are interning by the end of this month. They are checking whether the on-site internship operation guidelines are being followed and whether safety management is properly conducted.

The Ministry of Education, Ministry of Employment and Labor, metropolitan and provincial offices of education, and the Korea Labor and Employment Society are also conducting central-level on-site internship guidance and inspections targeting 17 metropolitan and provincial offices of education, schools, and companies. Furthermore, advisory meetings to collect field opinions from vocational high school students, parents, teachers, companies, teacher organizations, companies, and experts will be held until December.

Based on these measures, the Ministry of Education plans to announce improvements to the vocational high school on-site internship system within the year. The system improvements will focus on protecting the rights of interns, supporting companies participating in internships, and strengthening safety management and supervision, with plans to apply them after March next year.

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