"Don't Get Married Until My Son Graduates," a Parent's Complaint

Gyeonggi Teachers' Union 'Me Too Movement on Teacher Rights Violations'
"Teacher, I have many weapons" Threats Too

"The unmarried teacher passionately and effectively taught the children, so please do not get married until my son graduates."

This is a remark that Special Education Teacher A heard directly from a parent of a 3-year-old child enrolled in the special class on the day of the entrance ceremony.

This is one of the malicious complaints revealed by the Gyeonggi Teachers' Union Federation on the 24th. The union announced that it has launched a 'Me Too movement against infringement of teachers' rights' to protect teachers from violations of their rights and malicious complaints.

Continuous Visits to Pay Tribute to Seoicho Elementary School Teacher
Photo by Yonhap News

The Gyeonggi Teachers' Union opened a website titled "Malicious Complaints Killing Education, Child Abuse False Accusations Shackling Teachers. Please Speak Up Now!" and has been collecting cases of malicious complaints from parents until recently.

They then informed about the website launch to over 22,000 union member teachers, and from the 21st to the 23rd, 1,228 teachers posted 1,665 cases of infringement of teachers' rights and malicious complaints.

A public kindergarten teacher lamented, "My child cannot eat vegetables at home, but please feed them at kindergarten. However, do not force them to eat." The teacher claimed that quite a few parents made similar demands, causing many teachers to suffer from panic disorder and depression.

Some teachers were threatened by parents. One teacher reported hearing threatening remarks such as, "Teacher, I have many weapons," "You know I am a member of the Parent Association and the School Management Committee, right?" and "Should I sue you for child abuse? My child dislikes you, but since I am on the School Management Committee, the principal tolerates it." The teacher emphasized the need to limit parental participation in educational activities.

A teacher who was a homeroom teacher for first-year middle school students last year revealed, "A female student cursed at a male student, and when the male student informed the female student's parents that she kicked his shin, the female student's parents protested at dawn, saying, 'Our child does not curse, and she said she was hit on the thigh, so why do you say shin?' They came to the school with a lawyer and apologized together with the principal."

Families of teachers also expressed sympathy for the teachers' disclosures. One person, identifying as a family member of a teacher who worked as a school violence officer at a middle school in Seoul, wrote, "My family member was sued by the parents of a school violence perpetrator and suffered from stress-induced cancer, eventually passing away at 39 four years ago. It seems that people are finally beginning to understand now."

On the afternoon of July 20th, messages from mourners were posted at the main gate of Seoi Elementary School in Seocho-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Other cases included ▲treating teachers as emotional garbage bins ▲cases where school violence among students is blamed on teachers ▲inappropriate demands related to grades and attendance ▲demands on teachers regarding home life guidance ▲complaints about teachers' personal matters (marriage, pregnancy, etc.) ▲the reality of teachers being isolated alone in schools (lack of system) ▲complaints requesting special treatment for their own children ▲threatening complaints using acquaintances ▲cases where parental complaints led to child abuse reports.

The Gyeonggi Teachers' Union plans to operate the website without a deadline so that teachers can freely report their experiences of harm.

In a press release on the day, the union emphasized, "If you understand our teachers even a little, if you want to restore our collapsing education system, the education authorities must no longer ignore the suffering of teachers who are burdened with increasing heavy responsibilities and sharp pressures." They added, "The education authorities must immediately consult closely with education stakeholders and prepare practical and concrete solutions to protect teachers' rights."

Earlier, Teacher A (24), who was a first-grade homeroom teacher at Seo-i Elementary School in Seoul, was found dead on school grounds around 11 a.m. on the 18th. Subsequently, claims arose that the teacher was struggling due to excessive parental complaints, and the education authorities and police plan to conduct a detailed investigation into the related suspicions.

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