Gyeonggi Province Human Rights Center Conducts Mandatory Investigation into 6 Public Institutions Violating Disability Employment Quotas

[Suwon Ilbo=Park No-hoon] The Gyeonggi Province Human Rights Center announced on the 16th that it has begun ex officio investigations into six public institutions under Gyeonggi Province that have failed to comply with mandatory disability employment quotas, starting from the 15th.

The current "Act on Employment Promotion and Vocational Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities" mandates that public institutions and local government subsidiary/invested organizations employing 50 or more workers on a regular basis must employ persons with disabilities to comprise 3.4% of their total workforce.

This ex officio investigation stems from a report by the Residents' Human Rights Monitoring Group. In May, the monitoring group submitted a report indicating that 6 out of 21 public institutions in Gyeonggi Province fell short of the mandatory disability employment quota.

The Residents' Human Rights Monitoring Group is an organization operating under the "Ordinance on Guarantee and Promotion of Human Rights in Gyeonggi Province," composed of 30 citizens including 9 field experts in areas such as general human rights, persons with disabilities, and the elderly, as well as residents interested in human rights.

Through this report, the monitoring group pointed out that public institutions under the province have been passive in hiring persons with disabilities and that violations of mandatory employment quotas constitute discriminatory practices.

The "Gyeonggi Province Human Rights Ordinance," revised in July, allows the province to conduct ex officio investigations when it determines that significant human rights violations have occurred.

The province's Human Rights Center plans to investigate not only the six public institutions but also the disability employment conditions at other public institutions that do not fall under mandatory disability employment targets.

Based on final investigation results, the Human Rights Center plans to review whether there are any legal violations, examine the root causes of non-compliance with disability employment quotas, and prepare countermeasures.

An official from the Gyeonggi Province Human Rights Center stated, "Ensuring appropriate employment opportunities suited to the characteristics of persons with disabilities is a social responsibility of public institutions," and added, "We hope this ex officio investigation will contribute to effective disability recruitment at public institutions under the province."

The Gyeonggi Province Human Rights Center performs human rights remedy services including human rights counseling and investigations regarding human rights violations and discriminatory practices occurring in the province, affiliated administrative agencies, public institutions, outsourced agencies, and social welfare facilities receiving province support. For human rights violation and discrimination counseling and report hotlines: 031-8008-2340 (Human Rights Center) / 031-120 (Gyeonggi Province Call Center ARS 2).