FTC chief pledges rewards commensurate with 'outstanding results'

Twenty-eight employees of the Korea Fair Trade Commission received a combined 34 million won ($25,300) in special performance bonuses for their work on legal and regulatory reforms and sanctions against unfair trade practices.

The Fair Trade Commission said Monday it held its third special performance award ceremony on Oct. 7, honoring staff who contributed to eight outstanding projects.

The Korea Fair Trade Commission holds its third special performance award ceremony on Oct. 7, honoring staff who contributed to eight outstanding projects. [Korea Fair Trade Commission]
The Korea Fair Trade Commission holds its third special performance award ceremony on Oct. 7, honoring staff who contributed to eight outstanding projects. [Korea Fair Trade Commission]

The largest share of the bonuses — 7 million won — went to staff who worked on regulatory reforms to protect economically vulnerable groups, including consumers of funeral pre-payment services and product suppliers.

The recognized achievements included amendments to the Installment Transactions Act that established a legal framework for monitoring the financial soundness of funeral service companies and created the basis for joint investigations by the Fair Trade Commission and the Financial Supervisory Service. The FTC said the reforms strengthened the institutional foundation for protecting about 11 million funeral service subscribers.

Amendments to the Large-Scale Distribution Business Act that shortened payment deadlines for suppliers were also cited as a key achievement. The FTC said the changes improved conditions for the financial stability of about 210,000 suppliers at a time when liquidity had become a pressing concern following the collapses of Tmon and WeMakePrice and the start of Homeplus's court receivership proceedings.

In the area of unfair trade sanctions, staff who uncovered a price-fixing cartel among starch and starch-sugar manufacturers received 5 million won. The FTC credited the probe with contributing to price stability in food products after the companies involved lowered prices for key products during the investigation.

Staff who sanctioned price competition restrictions at gas stations in Jeju received 4 million won, while those who penalized Myeongnyundang for violations of the franchise business law and illicit support practices received 3 million won.

Bonuses were also awarded for regulatory reform and conglomerate-related work. Staff who drafted a regulatory overhaul to strengthen the bargaining power of small and medium-sized enterprises and small business owners received 4 million won, while those who developed a plan to integrate the mileage programs of Korean Air and Asiana Airlines received 5 million won.

An employee who handled the redesignation of Coupang Inc's controlling person from a corporation to a natural person also received 3 million won.

Alongside this, staff who helped South Korea win a full victory in a 325 billion won international investor-state dispute settlement case brought by Swiss elevator company Schindler received 3 million won. The FTC said it highly valued their contribution to reducing the national budget burden and securing international recognition of the legitimacy of the government's law enforcement.

Fair Trade Commission Chairman Ju Byung-ki said the agency plans to "continue building an organizational culture where employees can work with conviction and passion by providing rewards commensurate with the outstanding results that the public can feel."


y2k@heraldcorp.com