Subordinate Employee Made to Commute 332 Times as 'Driver'... Civil Servant Also Received Entertainment

[Financial News]  A civil servant from Ongjin-gun, who made a subordinate employee act as a 'commuting driver' over 300 times and received alcohol and entertainment from a business related to his duties, filed a lawsuit against his demotion but ultimately lost.
Incheon District Court Administrative Division 1-1 (Presiding Judge Kim Seong-su) announced on the 10th that it had ruled against the plaintiff in a lawsuit filed by civil servant A from Ongjin-gun against the county governor to cancel the demotion.
According to the court, A received entertainment (meals, alcohol, entertainment) worth about 1.37 million won from executives and employees of a forestry business contractor 41 times from September 2019 to June 2023. Additionally, from January 2021 to February 2023, while in the position of manager, he had a subordinate employee drive him for a total of 332 commutes.
In September 2022, it was also revealed that A used a vehicle intended for forest disaster management for personal use to visit his hometown Sacheon, Gyeongnam, and even had the subordinate employee pay for the fuel.
In June last year, the Incheon City Personnel Committee imposed a demotion and a disciplinary surcharge of 4.12 million won on A. It was a heavier penalty than the suspension requested by the Board of Audit and Inspection. The personnel committee explained, "The misconduct was repetitive and habitual, and he used his position to receive personal conveniences."
However, A claimed that "the entertainment was received personally and unrelated to his duties, and the commuting vehicle was a voluntary offer from the subordinate employee," and filed a lawsuit claiming injustice.
The court did not accept this. The panel judged, "The business associate who provided entertainment to A is related to his duties, and the commuting driving also appears to be an act using the superior's position." It further ruled, "In a position requiring integrity and law-abiding awareness, repeated misconduct was committed," affirming the demotion as justified.


jjw@fnnews.com Jeong Ji-woo Reporter