The constitutional complaint raised by researchers belonging to government-funded research institutes regarding the indoor heating temperature restriction measures of public institutions has been dismissed after two years. Dismissal is a decision not to conduct a case hearing when the requirements for a dispute over authority have not been met.
However, some judges expressed the opinion that the heating temperature restriction infringes upon researchers' environmental rights. There are also opinions that researchers working without worrying about the heat or cold would be more beneficial to society, given that the energy used for indoor heating and cooling does not account for a large share.
According to the science and technology sector and the legal community on the 5th, the Constitutional Court dismissed the constitutional complaint filed by researchers from government-funded research institutes at the end of March, asking for a ruling on the constitutionality of Article 4, Paragraph 1 regarding restrictions on energy use by public institutions.
Earlier, in January 2023, eight researchers from government-funded research institutes filed a constitutional complaint arguing that the government's indoor heating temperature restriction in public institutions was unjust. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced in October 2022 a restriction on energy use in public institutions, limiting the average indoor temperature in public institutions during winter to 17 degrees Celsius, which is 1 degree lower than before.
The guideline for indoor heating temperature restrictions in public institutions applied not only to those performing routine office duties but also to researchers in government-funded research institutes. Consequently, complaints emerged that it was nearly impossible to conduct experiments due to the cold. As there were no signs of the government's guidelines being relaxed, researchers from the Korea Polar Research Institute, Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI), Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), and Korea Basic Science Institute raised the constitutional complaint.
The constitutional complaint was dismissed two years after it was filed. The Constitutional Court noted that the announcement by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy in question was revised after media reports. Following the increased controversy after ChosunBiz reported on the researchers' constitutional complaint on January 5, 2023, the ministry eased the indoor heating temperature restriction regulations for public institutions, and the revised announcement was in effect until March 31 of that year before being abolished.
The Constitutional Court determined that "there is no interest in the protection of rights in the case filing because the heating temperature restriction regulations of the announcement have lost their effect." This implies that there is no need to determine the constitutionality since the heating temperature restriction regulations have already been abolished.
However, some judges supported the researchers through dissenting opinions. Among the eight judges of the Constitutional Court, Lee Sun, Kim Hyung-doo, and Cho Han-chang pointed out through dissenting opinions that the heating temperature restriction regulations violated the principle of excessive restriction and infringed upon researchers' environmental rights.
The dissenting judges stated, "Although the announcement was revised after the constitutional complaint was filed, allowing for the application of less strict indoor temperature standards, there is still a significant risk that harmful acts, such as restricting indoor temperatures in public institutions to an average of below 17 degrees, will be repeated in the future," and added, "Extremely high or low indoor temperatures are factors affecting the right to live in a healthy and pleasant environment, thus closely related to environmental rights."
They also pointed out that the restriction on indoor heating temperatures in public institutions is merely a "tokenism" policy. According to materials from the Emergency Economic Ministers' Meeting on September 30, 2022, lowering the indoor heating temperature in public institutions from 18 degrees to 17 degrees is said to save 6% of heating energy. Based on 2,548,077 megawatt-hours (MWh) of electricity sold for public use as of December 2022, if 6% is saved, the reduction amount would be about 152,884 MWh. This is only about 0.3% of the total electricity sales.
The dissenting judges noted, "The amount of electricity used for heating in public institutions is only a small portion of the total electricity sold for public use, so the actual contribution of the heating temperature restriction regulations to energy conservation is likely to be much lower than this," and stated, "This indicates that the regulation on indoor heating temperatures in public institutions had little practical effectiveness or that its impact was minimal."
In contrast, they pointed out that the harm suffered by public institution employees due to the heating temperature restriction regulations is direct and specific. The judges stated, "The damages to society as a whole due to the decreased efficiency of public institution employees are likely to far exceed the public benefit that could be obtained through the heating temperature restrictions."
Researchers from government-funded research institutes pointed out that creating a stable research environment is more beneficial to society than ineffective indoor heating and cooling temperature restrictions. A representative from a union of government-funded research institutes said, "As summer approaches, there will be a strong backlash regarding the indoor temperature restriction regulations, and I hope the government will consider enhancing the efficiency of research sites rather than implementing ineffective temperature restriction measures."