"At 81, an Age to Pass Away"... Incheon City Council Member's Controversial Remarks to School Workers

Hans Min-su, Incheon City Council Member [Captured from Incheon City Council Broadcast]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] A controversy has arisen after an Incheon city council member targeted elderly school workers with the remark, "At 81 years old, it's an age to pass away. They need to be let go."

According to the Incheon City Council on the 23rd, Han Minsu (63, People Power Party, Namdong 5) made this statement during an administrative audit of the Education Committee held on the 21st, while questioning workers affiliated with the Incheon Office of Education who work as school facility cleaners.

Councilman Han said, "Among the school facility cleaners, there is someone born in 1940. At 81 years old this year, they are too old even to go to a senior center. Does it make sense for such a person to be cleaning?" He added, "At 81, it's an age to pass away. Wouldn't it be a big problem if they died while working at school? If they do pass away, who takes responsibility?"

He also demanded action from Deputy Superintendent Jang Woosam, saying, "Workers over 80 years old need to be let go."

Currently, there are a total of 602 school facility cleaners working in public elementary, middle, and high schools in the Incheon area, of whom 8 are known to be in their 80s or older.

The Office of Education explained, when school contract workers were converted to workers under the superintendent in 2018, they could not retire all elderly workers at once, so a grace period was set by age group. Those over 80 have a short grace period and will soon retire.

In response to the controversy, Councilman Han issued a statement saying, "It was out of concern for the risks of elderly workers' labor, the responsibility and burden felt by school principals, and the health of the seniors," adding, "I may have unintentionally caused misunderstanding by emphasizing the point too strongly."

He continued, "There was no intention to insult the seniors or elderly workers. I have already apologized to the president of the Namdong District Senior Citizens Association for the remarks that could be misunderstood."

In this regard, the Incheon branch of the Democratic Party of Korea released a statement saying, "Councilman Han's insulting remarks have crossed the line of ethics and common sense," urging a sincere apology and strong measures from the People Power Party's Incheon branch.

The party criticized, "The senior generation is the generation that built the growth of today's Republic of Korea with their blood and sweat. The People Power Party city council member's disparaging remarks toward the elderly are acts that undermine the noble efforts of seniors and clearly reveal the deeply rooted ageism."

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