GYEONGGI, June 14 (Korea Bizwire) – From accountants to lawyers, Gyeonggi Province is accelerating its efforts to give opportunities to volunteers to share their specialized skills in the fields of medicine and law for the benefit of socially marginalized groups in the local community.
After the appointment ceremony of labor attorneys, which will be held on Friday at an office building in Uijeongbu in Northern Gyeonggi Province in the presence of the Korea Certified Public Labor Attorneys Assocation, 95 selected labor lawyers will begin their volunteer work with the title of ‘town labor lawyer,’ offering their services to workers and businesspeople in the form of legal advice.
According to Gyeonggi government officials, the province is the first in the country to provide a free legal counseling service at the provincial level.
The new ‘town labor lawyer’ service is the province’s latest social initiative, following the ‘town accountant’ and ‘town lawyer’ programs which were founded in 2016 and 2013.
The ‘town accountant’ and ‘town lawyer’ programs began as state-wide initiatives led by the Ministry of the Interior to help members of society with insufficient financial resources to protect themselves in the fields of law and accounting.
As town accountants and lawyers, 250 accountants and 266 lawyers are working voluntarily in the name of what is widely known as ‘talent donation’ in South Korea, the act of making a social contribution based on one’s talent or abilities.
From June to December last year, more than 2,000 tax consultations were provided by the program’s volunteer accountants.
In addition to members of local organizations such as the Gyeonggi Central Bar Association and the Northern Gyeonggi Bar Association, lawyers from other regions have also pledged to offer their support to the Gyeonggi region to help the community.
“As society moves forward, we will have a social welfare system through which skilled workers such as doctors and lawyers can make social contributions. Gyeonggi Province will continue to work closely with groups of specialized workers to promote and implement similar social policy,” a Gyeonggi official said.
Ashley Song (ashley@koreabizwire.com)