Ministry of Employment Launches 'Malicious Civil Complaints Employee Protection Team' for the First Time Among Central Government Agencies

The Ministry of Employment and Labor has launched a special employee response team to protect staff from abusive language and assault by complainants.

On the 6th, the Ministry of Employment and Labor announced that it had established the "Special Complaint Employee Protection Team" within its headquarters, the first of its kind among central government agencies.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor is one of the central government agencies with the highest number of complaint cases. The entire population files complaints at least once a year (over 25 million complaints annually, more than 36 million phone calls annually). In particular, there are many special complaints arising during the handling of workplace harassment grievances, including abusive language, assaults on employees during unemployment benefit consultations, wage arrears, and various subsidy-related tasks.

The protection team directly visits local employment and labor offices where employees have been harmed by such special complaints, provides one-on-one counseling for affected employees, devises customized protective measures needed by the employees, and actively responds to legal disputes arising from special complaints.

First, in collaboration with external legal experts, the team supports institutional-level lawsuits such as criminal complaints and accusations against complainants who provoke special complaints like abusive language and assault. If a complainant files a lawsuit against frontline employees without just cause, such as for dereliction of duty, abuse of authority, or damages, the team will participate in the investigation and litigation process to provide legal support for the employees involved.

Additionally, to effectively close complaints that are repeatedly filed despite being resolved with just cause, such as wage arrears petitions, the team will support the formation and operation of relevant committees and strengthen linkage support with psychological healing programs to stabilize the mental health of affected employees.

The protection team will begin a visiting counseling service from the 8th and plans to hold briefings and meetings at local offices throughout August. Meanwhile, the Daejeon Employment and Labor Office of the Ministry of Employment and Labor decided to take active organizational measures by filing a complaint against a complainant related to the case of a labor inspector who died in May while handling a labor law violation report at the Cheonan branch.

Minister of Employment and Labor Lee Jeong-sik stated, "We will actively support the activities of the Special Complaint Employee Protection Team at the headquarters level to create an environment where frontline employees can work with peace of mind, improve job satisfaction, and thereby provide fairer and higher-quality public services."

Minister of Employment and Labor Lee Jeong-sik. (File photo)
Photo by Yonhap News

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