[vol.13] Equality Counseling Activities_ "EQUALITY LINE" PUBLISHES A COUNSELING CASES BOOK:
WORKING WOMAN 2008. 3. 20. 11:36
The Line has worked not only on counseling activities but also on activities such as holding conferences and education programmes. Below is a summary of typical counseling cases published in the book.
And 32 cases (14.6 percent) were about sexual violence in the workplace, 30 cases (13.7 percent) about maternity-related malpractices, 19 cases (8.7 percent) about sexual discrimination in the employment, and 14 cases (6.4 percent) about occupational disease.
Married women workers comprised about 60 percent of those cases. And 79 percent of the women who reported their cases to the Line were working in the non-unionized workplaces, which shows a 6.5 percent point increase compared to 72.5 percent the year before.
Irregular workers such as temporary and contract workers comprised the majority who reported grievances regarding delay in wage payment. This was clearly a delay intentionally practiced by their employers.
Most of the sexual violence cases are about sexual harassment and verbal abuses which are not legally recognized as sexually violent practices under the current law. And employers tend to encourage the victims to resign from their job thus adding to the mental distress of the victim.
Maternity-related cases were mainly about violation of menstruation leave clauses, and also about lack of protection for pregnant workers.
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Unstable Employment (Delay in Wage Payment, Dismissal)
- No bonus given to an irregular employee
- Fired without retirement pay and severance allowance
I have been working in a trading company with 2 representatives of the company - I am the only employee. My employer told me the other day that I no was longer needed to come to work because he would close the office in five days. I got very upset mainly because I received the notice only five days before the office closing. However I thought I would get payed at least the retirement pay and severance allowance. Now the employer says he cannot pay me them. What can I do? (Seoul) - Unjust reassignment to another position
I am one of the five employees who had production workers in their current place of employment but who were recently were assigned into 'reserve' positions. I think the company has done this to us because we are active members of the union.(Masan) - Sexual Discrimination in (Employment, Assignment of Personnel, Early Retirement)
- Employment of women on a basis of their physical features
- Women are laid off first:
I have been working as an accountant in a private high school for 19 years. The school managers are trying to lay off six married women at the moment. No male workers are threatened. I cannot stand this injustice. I have been working for 19 years! Can your organization help me with this? (Pusan) - Woman forced to resign in order to have her maternity leave:
I have been working in a aluminum production company for 12 years. I got married in 1993, and gave birth to my first child early last year. But I could not take the maternity leave at that time because I knew that no women workers ever took the leave in this company. My supervisor still indirectly press me to resign my job, for example, praising a woman employee who voluntarily quit her job before she gave birth. (Pusan)
I am a sales person working in a department store. When hiring women sales workers, the department regards women's facial looks and bodily features as the primary criteria in selecting workers.When an individual shop recruits sales women, the managers of the department store interview those women face to face and do not allow the shop owner to hire the women who the managers think are not 'attractive enough.' Is there any way for us to discourage the managers from carrying out the terrible practices? (Seoul)
- Sexual Violence
- Offender gets better rewards
- Victim, not the offender, forced to resign
I have been sexually harassed by my supervisor for long. One day, he and I had a very severe argument. The senior supervisor of our department came to know the situation I was going through, and told me that I had better take a rest for a little while during which he would manage the situation so that I could come back to work with no problem.I believed what he said and turned in a letter of resignation as he told me to as a 'strategy.' But, my resignation was formally accepted by the management right after, while the offender is still working in the company without any punishment. (Inchon)
The foreman in my workplace is notorious for his sexually harassing practices towards women, such as speaking dirty jokes, touching women workers' hips, and so on. Although he once was called to the disciplinary committee and was suspended for two months, now he has returned and is given much better working conditions than before.He is even trying to blame and alienate the victims of his sexual abuses from the major group of workers. The victims have made a legal suit against him, but the managers in now doing their best to lead these women to withdraw the suit. (Seoul)
- Maternity Protection and Childcare
- Shortening of the period of maternity leave
- Deducting 10 days of menstruation leave from the maternity leave
I am a clerical worker. When I was pregnant, I kept taking the menstruation leave once a month. But later, when I was taking maternity leave for giving birth, the management allowed only 50 days of leave rather than 60 days which is the usual practice in our company.They said they had to subtract 10 days from the 60 because I already took the 10. I wonder if they are right. If so, is there no legal protection system for pregnant women workers? (Seoul)
I am a teacher in a private high school. The school management allows women teachers only one-month maternity leave. Even the Ministry of Education says it is not illegal because the regulations state that maternity leave can be given 'up to 60 days'. As far as I know, 60 days of maternity leave is the generally practiced one in most companies and institutions. Is this interpretation of the 'up to 60 day' clause right? (Seoul)
I am working at the kitchen of a company. When I got hired by this company about a year ago, the manager told me his company did not pay bonuses to workers. But, I recently found out that every employee who has been working in the company for more than one year receives a bonus equivalent to one month' pay.
So, I asked the manager about it, and he said that I am not eligible for a bonus, no matter how long I work here, because I am not a regular worker. He stated that he would raise my pay a little bit instead. I am doing the same work as others in the kitchen of this company do. Why am I not eligible for a bonus? Is there any way I can get it? (Inchon)