National Fire Agency: "Abuse of Power, Forced Drinking, and Personal Insults Will Never Be Tolerated... Organizational Culture Under Review"

Emergency Meeting of Fire Commanders Nationwide on June 26

Emphasis on Reinforcing Discipline and Eradicating Unfair Organizational Practices

Organizational Culture Innovation Task Force Launched for Comprehensive Review

The National Fire Agency (Acting Commissioner Choi Yongchul) announced that it will hold an emergency nationwide meeting of fire service commanders on June 26 to eradicate workplace harassment, abuse of authority, and other corrupt practices and organizational culture issues.

Choi Yongchul, Acting Commissioner of the National Fire Agency

This meeting, to be held in the main conference hall of the National Fire Agency in Sejong City, has been arranged in response to the recent death of a female firefighter in Gwangju. Its primary objectives are to reinforce discipline among public officials and address improper organizational culture, including abuse of authority, forced drinking, and unwarranted personal orders.

The meeting will be presided over by Acting Commissioner Choi Yongchul, with the attendance of fire headquarters chiefs, audit directors, and directors of various bureaus and divisions at the National Fire Agency. In addition, 242 fire station chiefs from across the country, fire administration directors from local fire headquarters responsible for personnel affairs, regional fire academy principals, 119 Special Rescue Unit heads, and 119 Safety Experience Center heads will participate via video conference.

During the session, leadership from fire services nationwide will be reminded of the importance of maintaining discipline among public officials, and the agency will make clear its intent to respond strictly to any improper practices or misconduct within the organization, regardless of rank or position.

In particular, the agency will emphasize that actions undermining trust in the organization—such as abuse of authority, forced drinking, personal orders, and verbal or personal insults—will not be tolerated under any circumstances. All levels of commanding officers will be urged to personally inspect the working environment and organizational culture of their respective departments.

Furthermore, to fundamentally improve and inspect the overall organizational culture, the National Fire Agency plans to launch an 'Organizational Culture Innovation Task Force,' headed by the Deputy Commissioner (Acting Commissioner). This task force will serve as a self-initiated effort to identify and correct structural issues within the fire service organization.

The Organizational Culture Innovation Task Force will conduct a comprehensive assessment of organizational culture throughout the entire fire service, including the central agency, affiliated organizations, regional fire headquarters, and frontline fire stations. It will also work to improve reporting channels and develop practical measures for improvement.

Key tasks under review include: ▲ improving problematic organizational culture ▲ enhancing the audit function ▲ activating public interest reporting channels ▲ and implementing strict disciplinary and personnel measures for misconduct such as abuse of authority.

The National Fire Agency will take stern action in accordance with relevant regulations for any illegal or improper conduct identified through reports, and will simultaneously establish institutional measures to prevent similar cases from recurring.

Acting Commissioner Choi Yongchul stated, "We are taking this matter extremely seriously," adding, "Through the nationwide meeting of fire service commanders, we will reinforce discipline in public service and, through the Organizational Culture Innovation Task Force, closely examine the internal issues of our organization."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.