Constitutional Court: "Education Ministry's Request for Disciplinary Action Against Teachers Refusing to Record School Violence is Lawful"

The Constitutional Court has issued a ruling determining that the Education Minister's request for disciplinary action against education officials who refused to record school violence perpetration facts in student records is lawful.

On the 26th, the Constitutional Court dismissed with unanimous consent all judges a power dispute adjudication case filed by the education superintendents of Jeonbuk and Gyeonggi provinces against the Education Minister, claiming that "the Education Minister's request for disciplinary action against officials under the education superintendent's authority infringes upon the superintendent's powers."

The court stated, "Disciplinary affairs concerning education officials under the superintendent's jurisdiction, such as education directors and supervisory officials, are 'state affairs' delegated to the education superintendent under education official laws and regulations, not local government affairs," and dismissed the case, finding that "the Education Minister's request for disciplinary action against them does not infringe upon or pose a clear danger of infringing upon the superintendent's powers, making this petition for adjudication improper."

However, the court noted, "Through amendments to the Education Official Act and the Local Officials Act in December last year, the status of supervisory officials under the education superintendent's jurisdiction was transferred from national civil servants to local civil servants," and added that "this decision does not clarify the nature of disciplinary affairs under the amended law."

The Jeonbuk education superintendent, considering internal review results showing that the Education Minister's directive "Guidelines for Preparing and Managing Student Records" implemented on March 1 last year violated the Constitution, and points raised by the National Human Rights Commission, sent a notification in August titled "Guidelines for Recording in Student Records with Illegal Elements Excluded" to schools within the province. The Gyeonggi education superintendent withheld the recording of student records for the same reason.

Subsequently, the Education Ministry issued corrective orders and direct cancellation regarding the notification, conducted special audits of the education offices in Jeonbuk, Gyeonggi, and Gangwon provinces, and required these institutions to implement measures including warnings and disciplinary action requests against related personnel within 60 days.

After rejecting reexamination requests from the education superintendents of Jeonbuk and Gyeonggi, the Education Ministry requested special disciplinary committees to issue disciplinary action against education officials under each education superintendent's jurisdiction for failing to comply with the direct work performance orders.

The education superintendents of Jeonbuk and Gyeonggi then filed a power dispute adjudication petition, arguing that "the Education Minister's request for disciplinary action nullifies the superintendent's autonomous authority to request disciplinary action, rendering it invalid, and the direct work performance order constitutes abuse of authority, making it illegal and void," and that "the disciplinary action request based on non-compliance with the direct work performance order is also void."