By Lee Kyung-min
The dispute between the Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) and the Ministry of Health and Welfare over a “youth subsidy” is developing into a full-blown legal battle as the former has refused to follow the latter’s order to cancel the handouts.
The ministry’s correction order came immediately after the SMG began giving 500,000 won ($447) in cash, Wednesday, to a total of 2,831 young residents as part of its welfare plan to support 19 to 29 year olds suffering from long-term unemployment. It plans to offer the money monthly for up to six months.
After the ministry’s deadline for the correction order at 9 a.m. Thursday, the ministry sent an official letter to the SMG at 9:20 a.m. ordering it to scrap the project immediately.
“The SMG pushed ahead with a welfare plan that was not approved by the ministry in advance, which is in violation of the law. The plan is scrapped,” the ministry said in a statement.
“The SMG’s pushing ahead with its project undermines the nation’s welfare policy principle that requires harmony between municipalities and the central government. It could further trigger other municipalities to follow suit in resorting to similar populist policies that could result in a moral hazard for unemployed young people,” it added.
It claimed that the SGM’s cash can be used for any individual activities unrelated to job training or seeking work.
“Offering cash is the easiest way to attract voter attention and the most dangerous way to render the recipients increasingly dependent upon the system. Further, it discourages and frustrates other jobseekers who did not qualify for the subsidy,” a ministry official said. “The subsidy is paid out of the taxpayers’ pocket, and like any state expenditure, tax should be spent on the most urgent issue, and the SMG project is not the case.”
Following the ministry’s order to stop the project, the SMG said it would ask the Supreme Court to issue an injunction to suspend the ministry’s decision, and file a separate suit against the ministry to nullify the cancellation.
“The central government’s employment policy is support for conglomerates rather than support for jobseekers. Even state-run labor institutes have said the central government’s policy does not meet young jobseekers’ needs,” the SMG said in a statement.
While it provided the money to 2,831 out of a selected 3,000 because it has not yet obtained approval for private information use from the remaining 169, the city said it may not be able to offer them money for now until a court decision is made.
The SMG also said it would not ask the 2,831 to return the already paid money, saying they do not have a legal responsibility to return it.
But the ministry disagreed, saying the whole project has been scrapped and thus the city government should collect the money back.