韩国金融工会要求复核公共机构迁移效果并反对政策性金融机构迁址

The Korea Financial Industry Union called on the government to verify the effects and side effects of the first round of public agency relocations before pursuing a second round. The union also plans to amplify its opposition to relocating state-run financial institutions at a general strike set for the 4th.
In a statement released on the 1st, the union said, "Before discussing a second round of relocations to the provinces, thoroughly verify the first round," adding, "The approach of leaking the target institutions and regions to the media first and then belatedly seeking opinions is wrong from the start."
According to a report titled "Outcomes and Implications of the First Public Agency Relocation Project," published in April by the National Assembly Budget Office and cited by the union, the rate at which employees of relocated agencies moved with their families stood at 71%, below the 75% target. Satisfaction with the living environment scored just 69.4 points. The occupancy rate for industry-academia-research clusters, measured against the area sold, remained at 56.6%.
The ripple effects on regional economies were also limited. While nominal gross regional domestic product nationwide rose 12.9% from 2020 to 2022, some host areas, including Dong-gu in Daegu, Jeonju and Jincheon County, fell short of the national growth rate. The union said, "It is difficult to conclude that public agency relocation has sufficiently achieved its core goals of dispersing the greater Seoul concentration, settling residents and revitalizing regional economies," and argued that "the achievements and limits of the first round must be objectively assessed before the second."
The union particularly stressed that policy finance institutions such as the Korea Development Bank, the Industrial Bank of Korea and the Export-Import Bank of Korea should not simply be moved physically. According to the National Assembly Budget Office report, the turnover rate at relocated agencies rose to 3.11% after relocation from 2.66% before. "Competitiveness in finance comes from expertise and talent," the union said. "Do not stake the nation's financial competitiveness on the illusion that moving institutions alone will revive a region."
The union argues that the settlement foundations of previously relocated agencies should be shored up first. It says living conditions in transportation, education, health care and housing must improve, and that links between relocated agencies and local industries must be strengthened. The union also emphasized that a policy agreement signed last year with the Democratic Party of Korea included inspecting how first-round relocated agencies are operating, preparing support measures and objectively analyzing the effects of relocating financial institutions. "Conduct a full investigation of the effects and side effects, and resolve the long-standing problems first," the union said. "If the relocation of financial institutions is pushed through without that, we will fight it by every available means."
Meanwhile, the union will launch its first general strike on the 4th in Gwanghwamun, Seoul. A total of 42 affiliated chapters will take part, including those at commercial, regional and state-run banks as well as the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund, the Korea Technology Finance Corporation, the Korea Asset Management Corporation and the Korea Housing Finance Corporation. While the introduction of a 4.5-day workweek and wage increases are the core issues in labor-management negotiations, halting the relocation of financial institutions is also being raised as a major demand.