1. Introduction to the text
This reading lesson explores a news article about a delivery worker who claims to have been verbally abused by a public health insurance agency employee after delivering food to their office. The article highlights issues of customer service and workplace behavior.
2. Vocabulary
| Korean Word | Romanization | English Meaning | Contextual Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 음식을 | eumsireul | food | The delivery worker delivered the food to the customer. |
| 손님은 | sonmineun | customer | The customer requested that the food be placed in front of the elevator. |
| 건보공단 | geonbogongdan | National Health Insurance Service | The customer was believed to be an employee of the National Health Insurance Service. |
| 배달 | baedal | delivery | The delivery worker delivered the food to the customer’s location. |
| 라고 | rago | said | The customer said to the delivery worker, “Didn’t you receive proper home education?” |
3. The main text in both Korean and English
한 공공기관 지역본부에 음식을 배달한 뒤 직원에게 폭언을 들었다는 배달기사의 주장이 나왔다. 손님은 ‘(음식을) 6층 엘리베이터 앞에 놔달라’고 요청했다.
A delivery worker claimed that he was verbally abused by an employee after delivering food to a regional office of a public agency. The customer requested that the food be placed in front of the 6th floor elevator.
그 옆에는 긴 탁자가 놓여 있고 그 위에 택배로 온 물건들로 보이는 작은 상자들이 놓여 있었다. 그런데 2시간여 뒤 건보공단 손님이 배달 플랫폼을 통해 A씨와 통화하고 싶다고 연락해왔고, A씨가 해당 손님에게 전화하자 “택배들 그(탁자) 위에 올라가 있는 거 안 보이느냐?”라고 말했다.
Next to the elevator was a long table, and on top of it were small boxes that appeared to be delivered items. About 2 hours later, the customer, believed to be an employee of the National Health Insurance Service, contacted the delivery worker through the delivery platform and said, “Can’t you see the packages are on top of that (table)?”
A씨가 “택배 수령이랑 배달 (표시가) 그렇게 되어 있었다”고 답하자 손님은 “아니, 사과를 똑바로 하셔야지. 건보공단 여성 직원으로 추정되는 손님은 여기서 그치지 않고 A씨에게 “가정 교육 못 받았냐?”라며 “가정교육을 정상적으로 받았으면 저렇게 할 수 없다는 생각이 든다”라고 말했다.
When the delivery worker replied that the delivery instructions were to leave the packages on the table, the customer said, “No, you need to apologize properly.” The customer, believed to be a female employee of the National Health Insurance Service, did not stop there and said to the delivery worker, “Didn’t you receive proper home education?” and “If you had received proper home education, you wouldn’t have done something like that.”
4. Reading comprehension questions
- What did the customer request the delivery worker to do with the food?
- What was on the table next to the elevator?
- How did the customer respond when the delivery worker explained the delivery instructions?
- What did the customer say to the delivery worker about his upbringing?
- What type of workplace is the National Health Insurance Service?
5. Cultural and historical notes
This incident highlights issues of customer service and workplace behavior in South Korea. The customer’s aggressive and condescending tone towards the delivery worker reflects a power dynamic where public sector employees may feel entitled to mistreat service providers. This type of behavior, known as “gapjil” (갑질), has been a persistent problem in Korean workplaces and society.