The Civil Service System

of the Republic of Korea

2018

1
Minister of MPM

Kim Pan Suk 2

2017 EROPA Bilateral Meeting Forum Kerjasama Korea-Indonesia untuk Administrasi Publik
Sofian Effendi,
Chairman of the Indonesian Civil Service Commission 3
 Contents

Ⅰ. Ministry of Personnel Management

Ⅱ. Personnel Management System

Ⅲ. Personnel Management Innovation Diagnosis

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Ⅰ. Ministry of Personnel Management

5
1-1. Vision

Republic of Korea with

Equal Opportunity, Fair Process, and Just Results

Fairer and Ethical Culture of Greater

more considering Civil service performance
guidelines
transparent the based on resulting from
to regain
personnel unprivileged expertise and better working
the people’s
systems and local competencies conditions
trust
communities
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1-2. History

Now
2014.11 The Ministry of Personnel Management was established.
2014

2011 2011 The Higher Civil Service Examination was changed to the Grade 5 Open competitive exam(administrative, foreign service, technical).
2008
2008.02 The Ministry of Public Administration and Security was established(combining the Ministry of Government Administration and
Home Affairs, the Civil Service Commission, the Emergency Planning Commission and the Ministry of Information and Communication)

1999 1999.05 The Civil Service Commission was established.

1998
1998.02 The Ministry of Government Administration and Home Affairs was established(combining the Ministry of Home Affairs and
the Ministry of Government Administration)

1950
1950.01 The first higher civil service examination(administrative division) was administered.
1948
1949.08 The State Public Officials Act was enacted.

1948.11 The Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Government Administration were established.

1948.08.15. The Republic of Korea Government was established.

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1-3. Organizational Chart

 Affiliated Agencies  Affiliated public organization

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Ⅱ. Personnel Management System

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Number of Civil Servants
* As of the end of December 2016

The Number of Civil Servants

1,046,487 persons

Constitutional National Election

Legislature Judiciary Executive Court Commission
4,300 persons 17,439 persons 1,021,402 persons 3,026 persons
320 persons

Central Gov’t Local Gov’t

650,149 persons 371,253 persons
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Classification & Grade

Minister
& Vice-Minister(s)

Grade 1-2 Senior Civil Service(SCS)

(Deputy Ministers/
Directors-General)

Grade 3-4
(Division Directors)

Grade 5
(Deputy Directors)

Grade 6-9
(General Staff)
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1-3. Senior Civil Service (since 2006)

The Senior Civil Service (SCS) is a strategic HR system through performance-oriented HRM.
By separating deputy ministers and bureau directors who assume key roles in policymaking from general staff,
the government makes good use of them in the right place at the right time and strengthens openness and
competition in an effort to be a better government.

Before After
Core Factors
Class HRM Position
Seniority system Performance-based
Staffing Performance & Openness & Competency
Closed Open
Accountability Competitiveness Assessment
Grade and Age- Job and Performance-
based Salary Remuneration based Salary

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1-3. Senior Civil Service HRM of SCS

Subject • Public officials that hold the position of chiefs/directors-general of offices/bureaus of

central administrative agencies. (2006) 1,305 -> (2016) 1,553

Appointment • General positions(“Autonomous positions”) + Open recruitment + Job posting

Candidates Pre-employment Competency

Process
selected screening assessment

Job levels • 5 levels(2006), Reorganized 2 levels in 2009

Remuneration Basic pay Incentive

Job based pay (Performance-based pay)

Evaluation • 5 ranks : Excellent / Good / Fair / Insufficient / Poor

• Regular screening(every 5 years) + ad-hoc screening (lowest evaluation grade + suspended from position)
Dismissal * Regular screenings eliminated in 2014
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1-3. Senior Civil Service Government at a Glance 2017

Korea ranked world’s 9th in “Extent of the use of separate human resources management practices for
senior civil servants in central government”

- Existence of a separate group of SCS (o)

- SCS are encouraged to have more career mobility (o)
- SCS are recruited with a more centralized process (x)
- The appointment term of SCS is shorter than for regular staff (o)
- Existence of a performance management regime for SCS (o)
- Selected features of the performance-management regime for SCS (o)
: Performance agreement with the administrative head of the civil service,
Dismissal as a result of poor performance (o) 14
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Recruitment 1200-year History of the Civil Service Examination

In 788, during the reign of King Wonseong of Silla, the ‘Three-level Reading Comprehension Examination’ was introduced.
This was the first time in Korea’s history that government officials were selected according to their academic achievements.
In 958, during the reign of King Gwangjong of Goryeo, the Imperial Examination(Gwageo in Korean) was
introduced, marking the beginning of appointing talented individuals through fair and objective exams.

Answer sheet by Yi Hwang, 1527

List of those who passed Gwageo, Goryeo
Yi Hwang is one of the most prominent
Korean Confucian scholars of the Joseon
Dynasty. He is well-known for his generosity
and outstanding achievement. Most people
recognize him as the figure on the Korean 15
currency note.
2-1. Recruitment & Selection

Ⅰ. Open Competition
 Equal Opportunity  Fair Procedures  Grades 5, 7 and 9  Written Tests and Interview

 Grade 5 Examination

1st  Multiple choice questions

 PSAT (Public Service Aptitude Test), English, Korean History, Constitution
round ※ English and Korean History are replaced with proficiency tests.

 Essay-type questions
2nd  Administrative Law, Economics, Political Science, Public Administration + 1 elective subject
round (Policy Studies, Theory of Information System, Theory of Enumeration Methods)
※ Different subjects for function category of general public administration

 Competency interview
3rd – Group Discussion, Individual Presentation, Individual Interview
round  Evaluation on the mindset/attitude, expertise, creativity and growth potential as a public official
※ Length of individual interview: G5-4hr, G7-2hr 10min, G9-50min
※ Open competition (Grade 7 & 9) : Written test (multiple choice) + interview 16
2-1. Recruitment & Selection

Ⅱ. Career Competition
 High level of Expertise & Experience  All Grades, including SCS
 Career Credentials and Academic Degrees in a specific field

 When there is an opening in a specific position

Announce-
ment  Disclose a job-posting describing required work/academic experience for the position
※ At a website of each organization and/or gojobs.go.kr

Application  Evaluate eligibility of each applicant

review  If necessary, applicants are evaluated according to the given scores

 Structured interview – Behavioral Event Interview (BEI), Situational Interview (SI),

Interview Behavior Description Indicator (BDI)
 More than 2 interviewers evaluate based on the submitted self-description and
work plan
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2-1. Recruitment Women’s Promotion Safety Net

Overview
• The number of women in public service have steadily increased but it still remains a challenge for women
to assume managerial positions due to the invisible barriers that prevent women’s development

What is Women’s Promotion Safety Net?

• Narrow Definition : A system that aims to ensure that
women public officials are not wrongly eliminated
from promotions and are promoted in proportional
numbers.

• Broad Definition : A comprehensive and proactive

personnel management system that supports women
in all areas of personnel affairs such as management of
placement, capacity development and improvement of
working conditions to ensure inclusion of more
women officials in the promotion safety net
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2-1. Recruitment Quota for the Disabled

Overview
• 3% of total positions should be filled by the disabled (3.44% in 2016)
* Career competitive examination those with severe disabilities can apply
• Preferential exam for certain quota which only disabled persons can apply for to promote recruiting public
officials with disability
* Target in 2017: 6.5% of recruited positions (269 positions)
• OCRE for Grade 7 and 9

Severe disability
• Different recruitment for persons with severe disability
• For career positions administered by MPM based on application review & interview
* Scheduled number of appointment in 2017: 25 persons

Support System
• To ensure convenience and accessibility of applicants with disability, allow extra time at exam (X1.5),
enlarged fonts on the test sheet, sign language interpreter, speech supported computer
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ooking for the elderly
Recruitment Quota for Low Income Bracket

Overview
• Select among the recipients of government benefits for basic livelihood or single-parent family
* Target in 2017: 2.8% of Grade 9 OCRE recruitment (133)
• Application: Open competition recruitment examination for Grade 9
Low income class
Category Total 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

G9 (OCRE) 462 22 12 13 41 53 75 100 113 133

Low Income Class

• To be eligible for basic livelihood support program
- should earn less than 50% of median income of all households, and
- either have no dependable member within family, or cannot depend on anyone
• To be eligible for single-parent family benefit
- should earn less than 52% of median income, and live with either a single parent or grand-parents only
- In the case of single-parent family with a teenager, (24 and younger), should earn less than 60% of median income

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2-1. Recruitment Quota for Local Talent

Overview
• Select outstanding talent in secondary and tertiary education institutions
• Extend opportunities of public officials for local residents
* After acceptance, candidates are appointed after internship.
- Quota (2017): G7 (120), G9 (170)
• (Eligibility) recommended by principal with excellent academic achievement

Process
Recommended Written test Internship
by school G7: PSAT Application
G7: 1 year
G7: Top 10% G9: Korean, English, review & interview
G9: 6 months
G9: Top 30% social studies

Quota for local talent

• To expand recruitment opportunities for local talents in public service, appoint extra candidates to meet the specific quota
* Target: 20% of Grade 5 recruited positions, 30% of Grade 7
• Local talents: Persons who graduated from universities outside Seoul
• Rigid ranking system among universities, lack of balanced development between Seoul and regional areas
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2-2. Promotion system

Classification Process
Senior
General Screening for
Civil Service Competency
Promotion Appointment
(Deputy Ministers/ Assessment
Screening of SCS
Directors-General)

Grade 3-4 Competency General

(Division Assessment Promotion
Directors) (In the case of grade 4) Screening

Promotion Test or
Grade 5
General Promotion
(Deputy Directors)
Screening

General
Grade 6-9
Promotion
(General Staff)
Screening  Promotion system = Performance Evaluation(80~95%)
+ Service Period(20~5%) + Additional elements(within 5 points) 22
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Promotion system Competency Assessment

Promotion Objective evaluation of the abilities and qualifications required of senior civil servants or directors
system who play a key role in setting and determining the main policies

- Competency Assessment of SCS Candidates  Failure rate : 21.7% (2006~2017)

Types
- Competency Assessment of Division Director Candidates  Failure rate : 24.1% (2009~2017)

Problem Recognition, Strategy Thinking, Change Management, Performance- Orientedness, Client Satisfaction,
Competency
Coordination & Integration

• Assessment Techniques • Examples of Exercises

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Human Resource Development

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3-1. Performance Management

Classification SCS G3 & G4 G5 & below

System Performance agreement Work performance appraisal system

(Once yearly) (Twice yearly)

-Work achievement: Difficulty, Perfection,

Promptness
Evaluation - Individual / departmental achievement -Work performance: Planning, Communication,
Factor - Job performance quality / ability Client-oriented, Negotiation
* Optional: additional points for other factors
(departmental evaluation, etc.)

Rank - G3 & G4 : 3 or more ranks (lowest rating assignment : selective) 3 or more ranks
- SCS : 3 or more ranks (lowest rating assignment : essential) (lowest rating assignment : selective)

Process Strategic Planning → Interim Check → Final Evaluation Same as left

- Drafting of list of candidates for promotion

Reflected in portion of annual salary - Reflected in promotion and payment
Utilization based on performance by results
* SCS considered to be ineligible if at lowest rate for 2+ years
* G5 will receive Annual salary based on performance
since 2018. 25
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Performance Pay

Performance Pay (G5 & higher)

 Paid monthly as annual salary Unit : Won / As of 2018

Rank S A B C
 Standard model
Person ratio 20% 30% 40% 10%
G4 8,140,000 6,110,000 4,070,000 0
G5 6,870,000 5,150,000 3,430,000 0
For G5, person ratio and supply rate are determined and paid autonomously by each ministry.

Performance Bonus (G6 & below)

 Paid at once as bonus in March Unit : Won / As of 2018

Rank S A B C
 Standard model
Person ratio 20% 40% 30% 10%
G6 5,910,000 4,280,000 2,910,000 0
G7 5,020,000 3,640,000 2,470,000 0

Autonomy of the department  Number of ranks (3 or more)  Person ratio (60 or less)
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Remuneration

Fixed Annual Salary

Political
Service

Senior
Job Performance and Task-related Annual Salary
Civil Service

Division Directors,
Performance-related Annual Salary
Grade 5 (Deputy Directors)

Seniority-based Payment
Below Grade 6
+ Performance Bonus
 Entry level G9(step 1) : Base pay + Allowance = 22,184,160 won (annual total income) 27
L4. Talent
ooking for the elderly
Information & Acquisition Human Resource DB

Introduction
• The Human Resource Database is home to information about more than 300,000 (as of 2017) talented personnel in all
social areas, providing assistance in hiring top-class talent for major public offices in the Republic of Korea.
 Female ratio : 23.7% (71,503 of 300,000)
• Contains individual's career history and background information(relevant in evaluating individual's expertise and
qualification for government position)
• Carefully managed and constantly updated in order to support well-judged and accountable appointments.

Application of the Human Resource DB

Organizations using DB can receive recommendation or directly search human resource information by accessing DB system.

Target Positions
Organizations
• Political Appointees
• Central Administrative Organizations • Executives of Public Enterprises
• Local Governments • Advisory Committees
• Public Agencies • Personnel Recommendation Committees
• Etc.
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L4. Talent
ooking for the elderly
Information & Acquisition Referral Recruitment

Introduction
Referral with the goal of discovering new talent, ReferralHuman
Established Recruitment is an advanced personnel management system
Recruitment Resource
where citizens can participate directly by recommending candidates for public office.
Database
* Any Korean national who possesses expertise / experience in their field & is willing to serve the public, self-recommendation is allowed.

Positions for Recommendation

• Public Officials in Political Service * Ministers, Vice Ministers, Commissioners, Chairpersons, etc.
• Open Positions : Positions at the director-level Government
& above that require specialist candidates with specific qualifications.
(Candidates from both the public & private sectors.)
Headhunting
• Head & Executive Officers of Public Institutions : Heads, executive officers, auditors, etc. of public institutions.
• Members of Government Committees under the President, Prime Minister, & administrative agencies.

Utilization of Recommendation
Referral
• Selected & managed as a candidate for public office after procedures such as information verification and review of
suitability based on related laws & regulations. Recruitment

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L5. Electronic
ooking for the elderly
Personnel Management System

Referral Human
e-Saram : Paperless e-HRM
Recruitment Resource
• ‘e-Saram’ is a standardized electronic personnel management system that
Database
supports the government-wide personnel administration & personnel policy
tasks of the MPM by computerizing the overall personnel administration
system from recruitment to retirement.
Government
• Each government agency can electronically manage personnel-related task*
through this system. Since 2014, a mobile service has been available.
Headhunting
* personnel information, payroll, time off, performance evaluations,
human resource development.
• The data & statistics available in this system are utilized of personnel policy
making by the MPM.

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6-1. Public Service Ethics

Public Service  Prevention illegal property accumulation of public servants

Ethics Act  Secure fairness in carrying out public duties

Restriction on Employment
Registration of Properties
of Retired Officials
Registration: Grade 4 or above Grade 4 or above is prohibited from being
Disclosure: Grade 1 and political appointees employed by the employment-restricted
Public Service entities for 3 years after retirement
Ethics Act
Reports on Gifts Blind Trust of Stocks

Gifts exceeding USD 100 in value Sell the stocks or place them in a Blind Trust,
from foreign agencies should be reported if job relatedness is acknowledged

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PETI: Public Ethics Total Information System
Registration of properties & disclosure
• Registration : Grade 4 or higher (224,055 / 2016.12.31)
* 20% of all public officials, Grade 7 or higher officials working for the license/permission department, police,
tax services, and Executives of public service related organizations3
• Disclosure to the public : Grade 1 & political appointees(5,298 / 2016.12.31)
* 0.5% of all public officials

What should be registered?

• Scope of registration : Real estate, personal properties, receivables and payables of a public official, spouse, lineal
ascendants and descendent

Category Details
Real estate Ownership, Superficies, Right of Lease
Rights corresponding to real estate Mining rights, Fishing rights

Cash· Deposit· Stock· Receivables· Payables, Intellectual Property Right

Personal property (KRW 10 million or more each) Gold· Jewelry · Antique · Membership
(KRW 5 million or more each), Cars, Ships, Airplanes and Construction equipment
Others Shares contributed and Stock option 32
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PETI: Public Ethics Total Information System

Registration Method Property Declaration Form

• Register on the web-based system called
PETI (Public Ethics Total Information System)

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The Improper Solicitation and Graft Act
Public officers, congressman, teachers(kindergarten, primary, secondary, university), head/employee of institution related
to public service and head/employee media companies are subject to the Act.

Up to
Customary Gifts 50,000won The Graft Act prohibits public servants from receiving
Congratulatory or Flowers for festivities free meal, gifts and any financial advantage in
condolence money or funerals connection to their duties.
up to 100,000 won

Gifts Up to
Except cash , gift cards 50,000won Do not give gifts For example,
Products of agriculture to concerned  Applicants for permission
and fisheries,
its commodities derivatives public officers  Those subjected to
up to 100,000 won monitoring and crackdowns
 Bidder
Food & Drink Up to  Those subjected to HR,
Meal, snack,
alcoholic beverage,
30,000won evaluation and audit
soft drink, etc.  Accusant and accused
* Products of agriculture and fisheries and its commodities derivatives
that contain agricultural and fishery products more than 50% would be
allowed worth up to 100,000 won. (including meat and forest products) 34
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The Appeals Commission

Appeals Review System

• An administrative appeals system in which the Appeals Commission examines & makes decisions on appeals when
public officials raise an objection to disciplinary action, unfavorable disposition, or omission contrary to their intention.
• By providing a complementary judicial function that remedies unlawful conduct or unreasonable personnel
treatment, the Appeals Review System guarantees the employment status of public officials, helps maintain the
career civil service system, and also, indirectly, promotes self-regulation by the government.

Grievance Review System

• The Grievance Review System aims to seek a reasonable resolution for grievances related to public officials through
examinations and consultations by allowing them to file complaints with the personnel authority in connection with
work conditions, personnel management & other personnel affairs.
• The review committee takes a third party approach and plays a moderating role by mediating and advising to
resolve grievances smoothly.
• The goal of the Grievance Review System is to identify various issues that pose challenges in work conditions & to
resolve such issues to boost morale by guaranteeing the civil rights of public officials & enhancing their work
performance.
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7. Pension System
Administration Body Pension Scheme for Civil Servants

∙ Pension Operation Category Contents

GEPS ∙ Retirement support
Contribution Rates Civil servants 9% + Gov’t 9%
Government ∙ Fund Management (civil servants & * 2016 8% → 2017 8.25% → 2018 8.5%
Employees ∙ Injury Compensation gov’t respectively) → 2019 8.75% → 2020 9% (step by step)
Pension
∙ Providing loans
Service 1.7% per year
∙ Housing supply Accrual Rates * 20161.878% → 20201.79% → 20251.74%
→ 20301.72% → 20351.7% (step by step)

Current Pension System Pension More than 10 years of service

Entitlement * ~2015 20 years
∙ Coverage : All civil servants in the central and local governments
(Number of active civil servants : 1,120,458 in 2017) Maximum of 36 years (step by step)
∙ Pensioners : 476,184 in 2017 Contribution Period * ~2015 33 years → 36 years

∙ Average pension benefits : 2,320,000 KR₩/month

( $ 2,110 in 2017 ) 65yrs
Regular
202261 → 202462 → 202763 → 203064 →
∙ Total fund amount : 109,506 in 100 million KR₩ Pension Age 203365 (step by step)
( $ 10,000 million in 2017 )
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Ⅲ. Personnel Management
Innovation Diagnosis

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The Personnel Management Innovation Diagnosis

• The establishment of the MPM(Nov 2014) , in charge of PM innovation has increased the demand for the effective &
responsive personnel management to the public.
• Starting in 2015, the Personnel Management Innovation Diagnosis Indicators were developed and have carried out
objective assessments.

Composed of 5 fields, 12 items & 41 sub-indicators

Title Field Description/item
∘ Willing to pursue PM innovations
Implementation capacity
∘ Quality of action plans & interest in innovations
Balanced PM ∘ Exchanges with the private sector
(Open & diverse recruiting) ∘ Balanced recruiting without discriminating against female applicants & the disabled
Personnel
∘ Awareness of human resource development
Management Human resource development
∘ Efforts to develop human resources
Innovation
Diagnosis ∘ Compliance with the mandatory period for remaining at assigned positions
Indicators Expertise/ ∘ Observance of the system of expert public officials & professional public officials
Performance management ∘ Observance of planned personnel exchange programs
∘ Efforts to manage performance
Working Environment & ∘ Efforts to encourage the use of personal day offs & the flexible work system
Condition Improvement ∘ Attempts to fight discrimination among government workers
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The Personnel Management Innovation Diagnosis Indicators

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The Personnel Management Innovation Diagnosis Indicators

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Thank you

www.mpm.go.kr 41