FKGEU Calls for Basic Pension Act Amendment to End “45% Discrimination” Against Occupational Pension Recipients

Amendment Bill Proposed With Lawmaker Soojin Lee

The Federation of Korean Government Employees' Unions (FKGEU) held a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Office on the 8th, urging an amendment to the Basic Pension Act to remove the provision that excludes occupational pension recipients from eligibility for the basic pension. The federation announced that, together with Soojin Lee, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, they had sponsored such an amendment bill.

The federation welcomed the government's 2027 basic pension reform plan as a priority. The government has decided to extend the basic pension to occupational pension recipients, such as civil servants, private school teachers, and military personnel, and their spouses, who have previously been excluded from the benefit, provided that their household income falls within the bottom 45 percent. This measure will newly include about 110,000 recipients. The federation called this "a meaningful first step."

Soojin Lee (left), Donggeun Shin, chairman, and Unpyeong Park, secretary general, hold a press conference on the 8th at the National Assembly Press Center to announce the bill amending the Basic Pension Act to delete the regulation excluding basic pension recipients from occupational pension benefits. Provided by the Government Employees' Union.

However, the federation argued that there are still discriminatory standards remaining. While the general elderly population receives the basic pension if their income falls within the bottom 70 percent, the separate threshold of 45 percent applied only to occupational pension recipients constitutes “another form of discrimination.”

The federation pointed out, "Occupational pensions are also social insurance schemes funded by the contributions that public servants pay out of their own salaries during their tenure, while the basic pension is a social safety net provided by the state to support the elderly. It cannot be regarded as a fair system to impose uniform disadvantages on public servants and their families because of the different nature of the two schemes."

Donggeun Shin, Chair of FKGEU, noted, “There is a widespread societal perception that public servants must endure low wages and poor working conditions because their jobs are seen as ‘stable employment.’” Chair Shin emphasized, "Demanding sacrifice during employment on the grounds of job stability, and then continuing to discriminate against them in retirement due to their occupation—can that truly be called a fair society? Public servants are ordinary citizens who pay taxes, insurance premiums, and contributions."

The federation stated that, instead of applying separate criteria only to occupational pension recipients, eligibility for the basic pension should be determined, as with other citizens, based on recognized income, which reflects actual income and property. Accordingly, the federation, together with Assemblywoman Soojin Lee, submitted an amendment bill to delete the provision excluding occupational pension recipients, their spouses, as well as lump-sum recipients and their spouses from the basic pension from 2029. However, a transitional clause allows different eligibility standards to be applied during 2027 and 2028.

The federation stated, "We hope that this press conference will not only address the issue of the basic pension for public servants, but also mark the starting point for a society where those who have devoted their entire lives to the country and its citizens will no longer be forced to sacrifice in the name of job stability."

Meanwhile, the government’s reform plan was included in the 2027 budget bill passed by the Cabinet on the 1st, and the goal is to implement the inclusion of occupational pension recipients in July of next year. The amendment bill sponsored by the federation and Assemblywoman Soojin Lee must go through deliberations at the National Assembly.

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