Civil servants and teachers demand a 7.1% pay raise next year, saying, "Stop the exodus from public service"

[Financial News] Civil servants and teachers urged a 7.1% increase in next year's pay to prevent workers from leaving public service.
The FKTU Civil Servants and Public Sector Survival Struggle Committee held a press conference on the 10th at the fountain in front of Cheong Wa Dae in Jongno-gu, Seoul, calling for the "realization of fair pay for civil servants and teachers."
At the event, the committee demanded a 7.1% increase in civil servants' wages in 2027, a monthly 35,000 won increase in position allowances for grade 6 and below, the abolition of the overtime pay reduction rate, a monthly 40,000 won increase in fixed meal allowances, a 10% increase in regular service allowances by grade, and the establishment of a legally binding system for setting civil servants' pay.
In his opening remarks, FKTU Chairman Kim Dong-myung said, "Civil servants' pay still remains at only about 83% of private-sector levels, so the sense of relative deprivation among civil servant workers is nothing new," adding, "The erosion of real wages amid triple burdens of high inflation, a weak won, and high interest rates is accelerating the exodus from public service, especially among young civil servants with fewer years on the job."
He warned, "Improving treatment and working conditions is absolutely necessary to provide stable public services to the public and ensure continuity in administration," and added, "If the government ignores the cries of 1.3 million civil servants and teachers and runs the Civil Servants Remuneration Commission in a perfunctory manner, it will face FKTU's massive resistance and struggle."
According to the committee, civil servants' pay this year stood at 83.9% of the level for office and administrative workers at private companies with 100 or more employees. Pay for general civil servants, excluding teachers and police officers, was only 76.7% of private-sector levels.
The committee also argued that real income has fallen as inflation has risen sharply in recent years. It said civil servants' pay increases from 2022 through this year totaled 11.9%, 2.9 percentage points lower than the 14.8% rise in consumer prices over the same period.
It also explained that the resignation rate among newly appointed workers has risen from 17.1% in 2019 to 23.7% recently, citing low pay and concerns over pensions.
The committee emphasized that "reasonable compensation for civil servants and teachers is not simply a matter of securing individual livelihoods," but "the most basic social foundation for maintaining the state's administrative capacity and providing the public with stable, high-quality services."
It also criticized the public-sector pay-setting system, saying it has been left entirely to the Civil Servants Remuneration Commission, which has no legal binding force, and has repeatedly failed to reflect inflation or the realities of public service.
After the press conference, the committee delivered a written appeal containing these demands to Cheong Wa Dae.
psh@fnnews.com Park Seong-hyeon Reporter