Ministry of Culture and Environment Non-Regular Public Workers Begin Joint Strike..."Abolish Allowance Discrimination"

Joint Strike Scheduled for June 20-22

[Asia Economy Reporter Gong Byung-sun] Non-regular workers affiliated with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) and the Ministry of Environment are launching a joint strike demanding the abolition of allowance discrimination. It has been two years since the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) issued recommendations, but their treatment improvements remain stagnant, according to the workers.

On the 19th, non-regular public officials under the MCST and the Ministry of Environment announced that they will begin a joint strike from the 20th to the 22nd demanding better treatment. About 500 people from the MCST and 270 from the Ministry of Environment are expected to participate in the joint strike.

On the 20th, they plan to hold a sit-in in front of the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MOEF) building in Sejong City to secure the budget, and hold preliminary rallies in front of the MCST and Ministry of Environment buildings. Additionally, on the 22nd, after a meeting of the Public Officials Committee at the Seoul Garden Hotel in Seoul, they will hold a rally and march toward the Yongsan Presidential Office.

Their demands include abolishing the MOEF’s guidelines and implementing the recommendations of the NHRC. While wages have not increased, non-regular public officials claim they face discrimination in allowances and other benefits. The non-regular public officials’ group stated, "The MOEF’s unilateral budget allocation and various guidelines infringe on our bargaining and labor rights," adding, "In December 2020, the NHRC recommended that the MOEF and the Public Officials Committee establish a system guaranteeing labor rights for indefinite-term contract workers in central administrative agencies and resolve discrimination in welfare allowances."

They also argued that the Public Officials Committee, which is set to expire, should be made permanent. The group said, "It has been three years since the Public Officials Committee was established, but the treatment of non-regular workers in central administrative agencies has not changed," and urged, "We call for the normalization and extension of the operation period of the Public Officials Committee, which is effectively ending this year."

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