I’m not sure about other countries, but in Korea, there is a belief that regular employees who passed difficult exams and hiring processes should be paid more than non-regular workers.
For that to make sense, regular employees should be doing more difficult work that non-regular workers cannot do, or producing superior results. But there is no such difference. The only difference is the process—they passed a harder test and now expect that to be guaranteed.
By that logic, those who studied harder and performed better academically in their youth should be paid more regardless of what job they have. Or scientists and scholars should earn far more than others. But in reality, that is not the case. Their argument does not reflect reality at all.
They might think this way: that since they made sacrifices, the government or society should guarantee their rewards.
But true sacrifice is a word more suited to those who sacrificed themselves for the country, the people, and society—such as independence activists.
What sacrifice did they make? Working hard for one’s own benefit cannot be called sacrifice.
The government simply conducted tests to select the people it needed. The competition became intense, requiring more effort—but that was a choice they made. The government only needs to guarantee the salary and term that were presented at the time of hiring. They should not demand additional privileges or special treatment.
Non-regular workers may have faced lower standards or less competition. So while their positions may not be secure, if they are doing the same work, they should receive the same pay.
This world does not reward effort proportionally. There is no such place. Even in Korean society, reality does not work that way. So why should only a certain group expect their efforts to be rewarded? That is a very serious form of selfishness and a sense of entitlement. Yet in Korea, it sometimes appears to be accepted as reality.
