#. In June, correctional officer A visited a franchise cafe in the greater Seoul area with a child. Seeing a notice for Military and Veterans Month that offered coffee discounts to uniformed public officials, A presented a mobile public official ID, but was refused with the explanation, "Only police, soldiers, and firefighters are eligible." When the child asked, "Mom wears a uniform too, so why not?" A could not answer, paid the regular price, and left the cafe.
Correctional officials, including correctional officers, are public officials who wear uniforms under the law, but voices from the field say they are being left out of social recognition and courtesy.
Recently, private corporations have been expanding so-called "hero discounts" for soldiers, police, firefighters, and others, but correctional officials are often excluded from the benefits. This gap is not limited to private discounts. At the national level, including interment in national cemeteries and risk-duty allowances, they are treated differently from police and firefighters.
In fact, Legoland Chuncheon is running a "Love for the Nation" promotion that offers up to 30% off admission for up to three companions of uniformed public officials such as soldiers, police, and firefighters. KATUSA soldiers serving with U.S. Forces Korea, conscripted police, the Korea Coast Guard, and conscripted firefighters are also eligible.
Correctional officials, however, are not eligible. A Legoland representative said, "It is difficult to offer promotion benefits beyond the eligible groups listed on the website." About 300 correctional officials work at Chuncheon Prison, located about 6 kilometers from Legoland.
The restaurant industry is similar. The franchise Shabu All Day is running an "All Day Heroes" promotion this month that offers a 10% discount on the payment amount for soldiers, police, firefighters, and others. PAIK'S COFFEE also held a discount event for uniformed public officials in June for Military and Veterans Month, but the eligible groups were limited to soldiers, police, and firefighters. A representative of The Born Korea, which operates PAIK'S COFFEE, said, "Although our promotional materials were distributed with correctional officials omitted from the eligible groups, we will include them going forward."
◇ "Correctional officers are also uniformed public officials"… high job risk, low recognition
Correctional officials wear dress uniforms, duty uniforms, mobile uniforms, and transport duty uniforms under the "Regulations on Correctional Officials' Uniforms." In 2024, the rules were revised to allow uniforms to be worn outside correctional facilities such as prisons and detention centers.
The job is not without risk. Correctional officials are responsible for the rehabilitation and reform of inmates and for maintaining order within correctional facilities. In emergencies, they are also deployed to protect critical national facilities and maintain order. They manage inmates around the clock in closed facilities and must respond to sudden incidents such as assaults or disturbances.
However, unlike police or firefighters, they have few opportunities to interact directly with the public, leading to low social recognition. That is because most of their work takes place behind the walls of prisons and detention centers.
A correctional official said, "Police and firefighters meet the public directly at incident and accident scenes, but correctional officers mostly work inside correctional facilities," adding, "Even though we are all uniformed public officials, many people do not know what correctional officials do."
◇ National honors also leave gaps… correctional officers excluded from national cemeteries and risk allowances
There are also differences between correctional officials and police and firefighters in terms of national-level honors.
Under the current National Cemeteries Act, police and firefighters who retire at the mandatory retirement age after more than 30 years of service may be interred at the National Cemetery for Patriots. Correctional officials, by contrast, are not eligible based on long service alone. They must meet conditions such as dying in the line of duty and having the Minister of the Ministry of Justice request their interment as a fallen public official.
The problem is that the level of risk in correctional settings is rising. According to the Correctional Statistics Yearbook, assaults by inmates on correctional officials increased from 157 cases in 2016 to 629 cases in 2025, about four times over 10 years. Yet unlike police and firefighters, correctional officials are not even included as recipients of separate risk-duty allowances.
On the ground, there are continued calls for treatment that reflects the actual job risks. Another correctional official said, "We often have to respond directly to inmates' assaults or disturbances, but there is a widespread perception that compensation for hazardous duties is not sufficient."
The Ministry of Justice is also working to improve treatment. It is pushing to add 292 correctional officers by next year and is reviewing measures to improve working conditions, including creating a risk-duty allowance. In consultation with veterans authorities, it is also pursuing institutional changes related to the interment of fallen correctional officials in national cemeteries. A representative of the Korea Correctional Service at the Ministry of Justice said, "We are actively promoting the inclusion of correctional officials in events for uniformed public officials conducted by the private sector."
Park Byung-seon, an adjunct professor at Osan University (special career official at Somang Prison) and a former correctional official, said, "To substantively restore treatment and social perception of correctional officials, the current Korea Correctional Service should be separated and elevated as an external agency, the Correctional Administration."