Controversy Over Private Hiring Amid Staff Cuts and Wage Freeze... Civil Servants 'Boiling'

Rising Prices but Wage Freeze Likely↑
Frontline Public Officials Say "We Worked Hard During COVID-19..."
Presidential Office Social Affairs Secretary's Level 9 Hiring Controversy Adds Fuel to Public Servants' Dissatisfaction

[Asia Economy Reporter Gong Byung-sun] Frontline public officials are expressing strong dissatisfaction over news of public servant staff reductions and controversies surrounding the presidential office’s level 9 private recruitment.

On the 12th, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety (MOIS) announced at the Cabinet meeting a 'Government Workforce Operation Efficiency Plan' to reduce the number of public officials by 1% annually. The aim is to maximize efficiency by reallocating unnecessary personnel. The number of public officials, which was 990,000 during the Lee Myung-bak administration, increased to 1,163,000 under the Moon Jae-in administration.

However, frontline public officials voiced concerns about the potential increase in workload. Over the past five years, 113 public officials have died from overwork, indicating the high labor intensity faced by frontline workers. A local government official in his 30s, Mr. A, said, "During COVID-19, public officials handled both quarantine measures and the presidential election," adding, "If the workforce does not increase under these circumstances, the remaining public officials will suffer even more."

There is also a trend toward freezing public officials’ salaries. The Public Officials Labor Union recently held a rally in front of the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul, demanding a 7.4% wage increase. However, on the 28th of last month, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choo Kyung-ho stated at a meeting with the Korea Employers Federation chairpersons, "Excessive wage increases will worsen the high inflation situation." Since wage increases were mentioned for the private sector, the possibility of salary freezes for public officials is also rising. The government has already frozen public officials’ wages for two consecutive years in 2009 and 2010.

Public servant exam candidates are also dissatisfied. Due to the staff reduction policy, a decrease in new hires is inevitable, and recently, controversy erupted over the presidential office’s level 9 private recruitment under the Yoon Suk-yeol administration. It was revealed that the son of Mr. Woo, the CEO of a telecommunications equipment company based in Gangneung and a member of the Gangneung City Election Commission who has a personal friendship with President Yoon Suk-yeol, was hired as a level 9 public official in the presidential office’s Social Affairs Secretariat. Furthermore, at a press conference marking 100 days since his appointment as floor leader, People Power Party floor leader Kwon Seong-dong said, "A father and son are separate," which further fueled the anger of public servant exam candidates. Mr. B, a public servant exam candidate in his 20s, said, "Despite the low pay, such as a level 7, step 3 salary being 2 million won per month, the reason for challenging the public official exam is the belief that the exam will be fair," adding, "This kind of government action only brings disappointment."

A representative of the National Public Officials Labor Union said, "Since wages are not rising even in line with inflation, public officials’ morale is falling, and it is questionable how long public officials must continue to sacrifice," adding, "We will increase the intensity of our struggle, including holding rallies in front of the Yongsan Presidential Office in the future."

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