Job Creation Plan

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The government has unveiled a five-year roadmap on job creation policies that it says focuses on the people and continued economic growth. The two main points are increasing jobs in the public sector while boosting the social economy, with the aim of resolving social issues through job creation.

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President Moon Jae-in's administration laid out a five-year roadmap on job policies at a meeting of startups and social enterprises with the aim to create jobs. The president announced a plan to boost the so-called social economy, which deals with social values such as reducing wealth polarization and offering more job opportunities for the vulnerable, by increasing the number of jobs.

[Soundbite] Pres. Moon Jae-in : "Social economy is an alternative to overcome growth without employment and economic inequality facing the South Korean economy."

A policy of creating 810,000 jobs in the public sector was unveiled as well. It includes newly hiring 174,000 civil servants, like police officers and firefighters, and 340,000 social service workers, including employees at childcare and nursing facilities. The government presented in detail that 300,000 jobs will be created through turning contract workers into regular workers as well as increasing hiring by state-run corporations. It will also place an emphasis on creating jobs in the private sector through innovative growth.

[Soundbite] Pres. Moon Jae-in : "The government will guarantee leaves of absence to professors, researchers and public agency employees for launching startups. It will encourage more people to actively start their own businesses by linking the number of startups to personnel evaluation."

In order to establish a state management system focused on job creation, the government will overhaul its budget and policy frameworks into those that are more employment-friendly.