Hospitals to face special workplace bullying audits, with consulting for high-risk cases

The government is launching hospital-by-hospital special audits to address workplace bullying — including "taeum," a form of hazing among nurses — and broader organizational culture problems at medical institutions. Hospitals classified as high-risk will be prioritized for organizational culture improvement consulting as part of a support system tailored to the healthcare sector.

The Korea Labor Foundation and the Korean Hospital Association signed an MOU Thursday at the association's office in Mapo-gu, Seoul, to provide hospital-sector-specific workplace innovation and cooperative consulting support.

The agreement follows a joint accord signed the same day by six organizations — the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ministry of Employment and Labor, the Korea Labor Foundation, the Korea Employment and Labor Education Institute, the Korean Nurses Association and the Korean Hospital Association — under the banner of "creating safe hospitals where people want to work." It was designed to improve organizational culture and working conditions at medical institutions and support sustainable workplace reform.

The two organizations agreed to provide organizational culture assessments tailored to hospital characteristics, offer customized consulting, and expand consulting participation across the hospital sector. They will also cooperate on hospital-specific education and the sharing of policies and best practices.

A key feature is the introduction of a "special audit" to examine bullying culture within medical institutions. Going beyond the existing basic organizational assessment focused on HR systems and labor law compliance, the audit will comprehensively review mutual respect, psychological safety, workplace bullying risks including taeum, reporting and protection systems, preceptor operations and shift-work arrangements — with nurses as a primary focus. Medical institutions applying for consulting will be required to undergo the special audit.

Audit results will be classified into three tiers: satisfactory, needs improvement and high-risk. High-risk workplaces will be strongly urged to undertake organizational culture improvement consulting. Institutions that refuse to address identified problems will lose access to consulting support and be referred for labor inspections.

Hospitals recommended by the Korean Hospital Association will be eligible for a fast track, allowing immediate selection for workplace innovation and cooperative consulting without a separate screening process, with organizational culture improvement consulting provided as a mandatory component. Self-funded contributions for culture improvement tasks will also be waived to lower the barrier to participation.

Support measures will also be available for hospitals that do not apply for consulting. Online courses covering organizational culture improvement and workplace bullying prevention in the healthcare sector will be offered, along with in-person training for hospital directors, managers and workers. A standard manual for organizational culture improvement reflecting the characteristics of the medical workplace will also be produced and distributed to member hospitals of the Korean Hospital Association.

"Medical institutions bear responsibility for patients' lives and safety, which makes an organizational culture of mutual respect and trust among staff more important than anything else," Korea Labor Foundation Secretary-General Park Jong-pil said. "We will actively support efforts to eliminate harmful practices and cultures within medical institutions — including so-called taeum and other forms of workplace bullying — and to build a healthy working environment where hospitals and their staff can grow together."