Enactment of the Stalking Victim Protection Act... Introduction of 'Correction Order Authority' for Public Sexual Violence Cases (Comprehensive)

Ministry of Gender Equality and Family Announces '2022 Work Plan'... Focus on Strengthening Response to Gender Violence
Legal Mandate for Protective Measures for Sexual Violence Victims Including Department Reorganization
If Public Institutions Fail to Comply with Human Rights Commission Recommendations on Sexual Violence, Ministry Issues Correction Orders
Cases Where Head of Institution Is Perpetrator or Multiple/Repeated Victims Occur
Research on Introducing 'Gender-Equal Wage Disclosure System' to Eliminate Gender Wage Gap

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family plans to enact a Stalking Victim Protection Act next year and make protective measures for sexual violence victims mandatory by law. It also intends to introduce corrective order authority for sexual harassment and sexual violence cases in the public sector.

On the 27th, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced its "2022 Major Work Plan" including these measures. The ministry will first strengthen the gender violence response system. The Stalking Victim Protection Act will be proposed to the National Assembly in the first quarter of next year, and victim protection and support will be enhanced. To protect sexual violence victims, the ministry plans to make it mandatory for heads of institutions or personnel managers to grant leave or reassign departments. It will also amend the Framework Act on Gender Equality and the Act on the Prevention of Sexual Violence to establish an obligation to prohibit disadvantageous treatment of sexual violence victims and reporters.

Hwang Yoon-jung, Director of the Rights Promotion Bureau at the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, explained, "To strengthen the legal basis for measures taken when sexual harassment and sexual violence incidents occur in the public sector, we will elevate the contents related to incident investigation, victim protection, and disciplinary actions against perpetrators to the level of law, thereby providing stronger protection for victims and ensuring smooth handling of incidents within organizations." She added, "We will make protective measures such as department reassignment or leave, considering the victim's wishes, mandatory, and include provisions for changing the perpetrator's workplace in the Sexual Violence Prevention Act."

The ministry will strengthen on-site inspections and responses for serious cases involving multiple victims or incidents caused by heads of institutions in sexual harassment and sexual violence cases in public institutions. It will also establish sanctions for institutions that fail to comply with corrective and supplementary demands. The ministry is considering exercising corrective order authority if public institutions related to sexual violence cases do not comply with recommendations from the National Human Rights Commission. In cases where the head of an institution is the perpetrator, or there are multiple victims or repeated incidents within the institution, it will be possible to conduct investigations ex officio or issue corrective orders. The ministry expects to be able to issue corrective orders by referring to similar cases under the Act on the Prohibition of Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities and the Act on the Prohibition of Age Discrimination in Employment. Additionally, starting next year, the list of heads of institutions who did not participate in sexual harassment prevention education will be disclosed to the media from this year.

Hwang Yoon-jung said, "If recommendations related to sexual harassment issued by the Human Rights Commission are not implemented, the Minister of Gender Equality and Family will issue corrective orders, and if these orders are not followed, fines will be imposed. The amendment to the Framework Act on Gender Equality was proposed in October, and we plan to actively discuss the related legal revisions."

To strengthen responsibility for child support enforcement, the ministry will lower the current debt amount threshold for requesting travel bans from 50 million won to a lower amount and relax the emergency support income criteria from 60% of the median income to 75% or less. A pilot project will be launched to provide monthly child-rearing support of 200,000 won to adolescent parents aged 24, and to reduce the burden on working single parents, 30% of earned income or business income will be deducted when selecting recipients for child-rearing support. The target group for menstrual product support for vulnerable youth will be expanded 2.1 times from ages 11-18 to ages 9-24.

To improve women's representation in the private sector and close the gender gap in the labor market, the ministry will announce the gender composition of executives and gender wage gaps of listed companies in August and September next year, respectively. The integrated service linking career-interrupted women with Saeil Centers for employment will expand its target from 1,500 to 2,500 people, and employment retention and post-career management will be strengthened. A pilot project to improve gender impact assessments and gender-responsive budgeting and accounting systems will also be implemented this year.

The ministry is also considering introducing a "Gender Equality Wage Disclosure System" to close the gender wage gap. Jeong Gu-chang, Director of the Planning and Coordination Office at the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, said, "We are investigating and announcing gender wage gaps and gender differences in length of service for all listed companies and public institutions, and are researching ways to introduce a gender-equal wage disclosure system with the Women's Policy Research Institute. The Ministry of Employment and Labor is conducting research to improve the AA system this year, and the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family will collaborate on this."

To support the elderly survivors of Japanese military comfort women, the ministry will increase the living stabilization support fund (from 1.55 million won to 1.63 million won per month) and nursing care expenses (from 1.62 million won to 2.9 million won per month). It will expand research at the Institute for Research on the Japanese Military Comfort Women Issue and consulting for preserving privately held materials, and focus on spreading international consensus through support for UNESCO record registration and other efforts.

Minister Jeong Young-ae of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family stated, "During this difficult time when everyone is exhausted due to COVID-19, we will carefully monitor the field to ensure no policy blind spots occur, and strengthen support by standing with career-interrupted women, adolescent parents, single-parent families, youth in crisis, and victims of violence."

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