[Ministry of Food and Drug Safety]
[Ministry of Food and Drug Safety]

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety has confirmed a range of misconduct among its employees, including personal attacks on colleagues and senior staff assigning personal errands to junior employees, prompting calls for countermeasures.

Data submitted to Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Seo Mi-hwa showed that 19 employees, including those at affiliated institutions, were disciplined for misconduct uncovered through anonymous reports. Seo is a member of the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee. The cases occurred between 2022 and last month, a span of about five years.

Of these, three cases occurred between January and August this year.

An employee who made inappropriate remarks and behaved improperly at a work dinner received a three-month suspension in May. Another employee who directed inappropriate remarks and behavior toward junior staff was given a one-month pay cut in July.

There was also a case in which an employee received a "Caution" in June for giving outside lectures without reporting them.

Last year, two disciplinary cases stemmed from anonymous reports, both involving personal attacks on colleagues.

In 2024, there were five disciplinary decisions in total, two of which involved receiving goods from individuals related to the employees' official duties.

The remaining three cases involved using budget funds for unauthorized purposes, improper exercise of official authority, and aggressive language and behavior toward a colleague, respectively.

In 2023, there were six disciplinary actions in total, four of which involved failing to report outside lectures.

The remaining two cases involved improper handling of hiring procedures for public service workers and carrying out official duties based on improper requests, respectively.

In 2022, three disciplinary actions were taken over dehumanizing remarks toward a specific employee, discriminatory treatment, and assigning personal errands to subordinates.

"The repeated emergence of misconduct cannot be seen merely as individual deviance," Seo said. "The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety must review its overall organizational culture and substantially strengthen its prevention, reporting and protection systems."


husn7@heraldcorp.com