성과주의 임금체계와 관련한 법적 쟁점 ― 성과급 재분배 행위에 대한 징계처분 사례 검토 ―

As the performance-based wage system, which provides differential compensation based on work performance, was introduced and rapidly spread, various dispute situations arising in this regard are encountered. This is not just a matter of reorganizing the seniority-centered compensation system into performance-based pay or job-based pay, but this is an area that poses important legal challenges, including designing and operating related systems to meet the purposes pursued by labor law, such as improving working conditions such as wages, protecting employees, and making practical equal decisions on working conditions. Labor law issues that may arise in a performance-based wage system include, for example, problems with the performance-based salary system itself and whether wage reductions or unfavorable personnel dispositions for low performers are permitted. Questions are also raised about which occupations are suitable for the introduction of performance-based pay and whether a performance-based wage-determining structure will lead to a reduction in the role of labor unions. There is also a need to critically examine the legitimacy of the legal provisions that require differential payment of performance bonuses to public officials, prohibit ex post facto redistribution, and impose sanctions on violations. This article deals with a case in which a union leader at a quasi-governmental organization and a private high school teacher, who led the ex post facto redistribution of performance bonuses differentially paid to employees, were subject to disciplinary action for their respective actions. In both cases, the Supreme Court ruled that redistribution of performance bonuses could not be used as a reason for disciplinary action. Based on the social background and facts of the case, we examine the meaning and challenges of the interpretation adopted by the Supreme Court in relation to the performance-based wage system.