April 27 - The Korean Government’s added limitations on the eligibility of applicants for administrative internship, requiring applicants to be under the age of 29 with more than two-year vocational college degree, are a violation of rights of equality, said the NHRCK.
Administrative Internship is a program launched by the Ministry of Public Administration and Security (MOPAS) in 2008. The program is designed to provide younger people with opportunities at government organizations for up to a year, with a payment of 1 million won (US$744) a month. Applicants aged 18 to 29 with a degree equivalent to or higher than a two-year vocational college degree can apply for the program.
“I was going to apply for the administrative internship of Multifunctional Administrative City Construction Agency (MACCA) in December 2008, but there were limitations on age and academic background,” said a 37 year-old man, identified as Mr. Min, in his complaint filed with the NHRCK on December 15, 2008.
The NHRCK decided that the limitations were discriminatory and issued a recommendation calling on the chairman of MACCA to remove the age and academic background limit in hiring its interns. The NHRCK also called on the Minister of the MOPAS to amend the scheme and guidelines of the internship program by deleting the limit on the academic background and the age of the applicants.
Meanwhile, the chairman of the MACCA asserted that it is hard to remove the limitations at an individual organization’s discretion, when the program is pan-governmental.
In addition, in view of the purpose of the program to help younger people land jobs, the MOPAS claimed that it is unavoidable to limit the age and academic background of the applicants.
The NHRCK concluded, although the necessity of the special unemployment policy for young people is understandable, there is no rational reason for the government to limit the age and academic career of applicants. The Commission also said the government’s role should be limited as a policy maker to help the young people to be employed, not as an employer itself who puts discriminatory limitations.
