Gwangju Nam-gu Protects Whistleblowers with 'Trusted Lawyers and Labor Attorneys'

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Jin-hyung] Nam-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City, will fully operate the ‘Safe Lawyer and Safe Labor Attorney’ system, which allows victims of workplace harassment or unfair acts and whistleblowers to report corruption and other misconduct without visiting the district office department, thereby preventing exposure of their identity.

On the 3rd, Nam-gu announced that it has decided to appoint a ‘Safe Lawyer and Safe Labor Attorney’ respectively to strengthen protection for reporters of workplace power abuse and unfair acts and to secure a whistleblowing channel through an anonymous proxy reporting system.

The reason for operating the anonymous proxy reporting system through Safe Lawyers and Safe Labor Attorneys is that, due to the nature of workplace power abuse, unfair acts, and whistleblowing cases, the perpetrators or wrongdoers are often workplace superiors or seniors, so reporters feel a high risk of identity exposure and psychological burden if they visit the district office department to report.

Additionally, there are cases where reporters cannot actively respond due to concerns about secondary damage such as deterioration of relationships among workplace members and personnel disadvantages.

Accordingly, Nam-gu plans to appoint one lawyer and one labor attorney recommended respectively by the Gwangju Bar Association and the Certified Labor Attorney Association as ‘Safe Lawyer and Safe Labor Attorney’ on the 18th and begin full-scale operation of the system.

Within the public office, there is talk that the operation of the anonymous proxy reporting system will contribute to creating a clean public service society free from power abuse and corruption by activating reports on power abuse, unfair acts, and whistleblowing.

Proxy reporting via the personal emails of the Safe Lawyer and Safe Labor Attorney appointed by the district office is possible, which alleviates the burden of whistleblowing and thoroughly guarantees anonymity.

Also, after the Safe Lawyer and Labor Attorney verify the facts and evidence regarding the reporter’s report, they submit the report to the district office department under their own names, and the lawyer and labor attorney directly respond to the investigation results, fundamentally blocking any disadvantages arising from the report.

A Nam-gu official stated, “We will eradicate workplace harassment and unfair acts using positions within the public office by strengthening confidentiality for reporters and victims, taking active protective measures, and enhancing the objectivity and fairness of investigations into whistleblowing, so that a culture of mutual respect and integrity can flourish.”

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