"Get Pregnant Next Year"... Ulsan Collects 200 Cases of Teacher Rights Violations in Two Days

"Please have your pregnancy next year."

"Please send a text message when your child's nosebleed stops."

After a new teacher died at Seoul Seoi Elementary School, the Ulsan Teachers' Union collected cases related to violations of teachers' rights, gathering over 200 cases in two days.

A wreath commemorating Mr. A, a teacher at a private elementary school in Seoul, is placed in front of the Jungbu Education Support Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

According to the Ulsan Teachers' Union on the 27th, more than 200 cases were disclosed from the 'Survey on Violations of Teachers' Rights' conducted among union members over two days from the 25th to the 26th.

Elementary schools accounted for the most cases with 168, followed by middle schools with 15, high schools with 7, special schools with 9, and kindergartens with 2.

Teachers reported that the most common type of rights violation was "malicious or unfair complaints from parents (40%)."

Following that, many teachers also complained about ▲noncompliance, disregard, and defiance against legitimate classroom management (33%) ▲verbal abuse and violence from students (17%) ▲verbal abuse and violence from parents (10%). Many cases involved serious content that insulted the dignity of teachers, not just simple interference with educational activities.

Among the major cases, there was an incident where a parent called at 2 a.m. drunk, shouting, or demanded daily text reports about their child's behavior.

The Ulsan Teachers' Union stated, "Although the term 'classroom collapse' has been circulating for some time, this case collection shows that violations of teachers' rights have now reached a serious level threatening teachers' survival."

According to the union, one parent made threatening calls day and night after a teacher reported child abuse.

There were cases where a parent scolded a pregnant homeroom teacher, asking "Why did you take the homeroom?" and another where a parent told a teacher "Have your pregnancy next year" because they disliked the change of their child's homeroom teacher.

Cases were also revealed where students spat phlegm on teachers' faces, punched and cursed at them, and made sexually harassing remarks or actions during class.

There were calls for an integrated complaint window at schools. The union urged, "Currently, all parental complaints are handled individually by teachers. It is common for teachers' private lives to be invaded by parental complaints not only during class but also outside working hours. Schools should establish an integrated complaint window so that only important matters related to students' education are forwarded to the responsible teachers."

They also demanded, "Amend laws related to child abuse against teachers and exclude teachers from school violence duties."

Meanwhile, the Ulsan Metropolitan Office of Education announced that a total of 208 teachers applied for honorary retirement at the end of February and August this year, marking the highest annual figure ever recorded.

By school level, 70 were elementary, 106 were secondary, and 31 were private school teachers, with the highest number of retirement applications coming from secondary school teachers.

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