Lee Hye-hoon, a nominee for minister for planning and budget, is seen in front of the Korea Deposit Insurance Corp. building in Seoul, Monday. Yonhap

The National Assembly and newsrooms, as workplaces, share one thing in common. Just as editors and reporters are at times pitted against each other over issues such as content edits, editorial direction and the realities of reporting from the field, lawmakers and their staff often misunderstand one another’s motives.

Lawmakers sometimes complain that their staff are passive, incompetent and lack creativity. As a result, they argue that they do not receive sufficient support. Legislative aides, on the other hand, might say their bosses are excessively demanding and treat them like personal servants, forcing them to work long hours and causing burnout.

Years ago, I had opportunities, at different times, to sit down with a first-term lawmaker and a legislative staffer working for a second-term lawmaker and hear their sides of the story.

The lawmaker complained about her “idle” staff. She said the National Assembly audit was just around the corner, yet none of her aides had begun drafting review........

© The Korea Times