About 70 percent of government officials said they feel embarrassed when news stories highlight negative aspects of their agencies, a report by a state-run research institute showed Thursday.
The Korea Institute of Public Administration surveyed 1,000 government officials and 1,000 employees of private companies to compare employee sentiments in the public and private sectors.
Some 68.4 percent of the civil servants said they feel "embarrassed" when articles decrying the organizations they work at appear in the news, compared to 58.6 percent of the private sector workers who said so.
Those working in the public sector responded to positive feedback less than those in the private sector, where 58.3 percent of respondents said they feel "like they themselves have been complimented when people compliment my organization." Only 51 percent of the public officials answered yes to the same question.
About 66.1 percent of those employed by private companies agreed that "Our organizations' success is my success," compared to 48.1 percent of civil servants who thought so.
More officials working in the private sector felt they had more control over their work than the public sector. When asked if they are allowed "substantial autonomy when it comes to decision making," 54.3 percent of the employees of private companies answered yes compared to only 38.6 percent of civil servants.
More employees of private companies felt their organization had clear goals, compared to public officials. Sixty-five percent of those in the private sector said they clearly knew what the companies' goal was and 49.6 percent of them said they can objectively quantify the companies' accomplishments in the past year -- but 55.2 percent of public officials answered yes to the former and 35.5 percent to the latter.
"The public sector has a tendency to link outside evaluations (of their organization) to their own pride, while the private sector tends to link the organization's success to their own personal success," the researchers at the KIPA said. "The public agencies must give greater autonomy to its employees, along with more rights to actively make decisions depending on the situation."
The survey also indicated that public officials are generally less content with their work, with 50.7 percent saying they will work in the public sector if given a choice, while 71.1 percent said they will willingly choose a career in the private sector.
The report noted that there needs to be more compensation and opportunities for self-development for public officials, which can motivate them to stay at their jobs long term.
minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com
