Medical school professor who submitted resignation letter may be subject to imprisonment of up to 1 year or dismissal

[세종=뉴스핌] Reporter Shin Do-kyung = If a medical school professor submits a letter of resignation in opposition to the government’s policy to increase the number of medical schools, a national university professor may be imprisoned for up to one year, and a private university professor may be restricted from dismissal (resignation) from the National Assembly.

According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare on the 26th, even if a medical school professor submits a letter of resignation, it is a violation of the obligation to prohibit collective action outside of official duties.

An official from the Ministry of Health and Welfare said, “National university professors violated Article 55 of the National Public Officials Act (Educated Public Officials Act), and private university professors are subject to the National Public Officials Act in accordance with Article 66 of the Private School Act,” and added, “All of them are subject to disciplinary action as they are in violation of the obligation to prohibit collective action outside of official duties.” “He said.

◆ National university professor, punishable by up to 1 year in prison… Private university professors, restricted from dismissal

National university medical school professors are faculty members belonging to national universities run by the state and perform the role of national civil servants. If a medical school professor who is a public servant submits a collective resignation letter, it will be a violation of the obligation to prohibit collective action outside of official duties under Article 55 of the National Civil Service Act, and will be subject to imprisonment for up to one year.

The agency responsible for filing complaints was originally the Ministry of Education. However, currently, punishment for doctors’ group actions is decided jointly by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ministry of Education, and the Ministry of Justice. If the government files a complaint for punishment, the investigative agency will begin an investigation, and depending on the results of the investigation, a professor at a national university medical school may be punished.

Unlike professors at national university medical schools, medical school professors at private universities do not have the status of public servants, so it is difficult for them to be punished. However, according to Article 61 of the Private School Act, grounds for disciplinary action are established when a private school teacher commits an act that goes against the teacher’s duties, violates the duties of his or her job, or commits an act that undermines the dignity of a teacher regardless of whether it is job-related or not.

If a private university medical school professor is found to be subject to disciplinary action, dismissal from the National Assembly is limited. According to ‘Article 61 2 of the Private School Act’, if there is a reason for disciplinary action, the person with the authority to appoint a teacher, such as the school president, must request a disciplinary decision from the Teacher Disciplinary Committee.

However, it is written that dismissal may not be permitted in order to prevent a situation where disciplinary action cannot be taken through dismissal. This applies to cases where a person is being prosecuted for a criminal case related to misconduct, a case where the Teacher Disciplinary Committee is requesting a decision on severe disciplinary action, and a case where an investigative agency is investigating. In this case, dismissal is implemented when a decision on disciplinary action is made.

An official from the Ministry of Health and Welfare expressed the position that it is difficult for a medical school professor to resign, saying, “Resignation can only be decided when punishment or the level of disciplinary action is decided.”

◆ When submitting a resignation letter as a professor… Applying disciplinary ‘obligation’ according to law

It is expected that medical school professors will inevitably face disciplinary action when they submit their resignations. This is because, according to ‘Article 78 of the National Public Officials Act’, if a person violates his/her official duties or damages his/her prestige, disciplinary action ‘shall be taken’ rather than recommended.

Meanwhile, medical school professors submitted their resignations on April 25 in protest against the government’s policy of increasing the number of medical schools. The resignation took effect on the 25th, one month later, but it has not yet led to mass resignations and has not caused confusion such as cancellation of medical treatment.

However, medical school professors announced that they would leave the hospital starting May 1. Professors at Seoul National University Hospital, Severance Hospital, Asan Medical Center, Samsung Seoul Hospital, and Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital have decided to participate in the ‘once a week’ vacation, raising concerns about the damage caused by medical vacancies.

The government stated that it is not considering administrative action against the medical school professor who submitted his resignation. It was stated that an order to maintain medical practice or an order prohibiting acceptance of a resignation letter is possible, but maintaining medical practice through an administrative order is not desirable.

Vice Minister Park explained, “We expect that extreme actions will not be carried out even if we do not issue an order,” and “We will continue to engage in dialogue and persuasion efforts with professors.”

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