Candidate Kim Seong-hwan: "Creating Good Jobs Requires a Shift in Government Policy"

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Yoon Jamin] Kim Seonghwan, a preliminary candidate for the National Assembly election in Dongnam (Eul), Gwangju Metropolitan City, asserted that “a policy shift by the government is necessary so that companies can create good jobs.”

On the 20th, Candidate Kim emphasized in a press release, “Since jobs are created by companies, the government should not only provide short-term measures through fiscal spending but also make a policy shift to support regulatory reform and innovative growth so that companies can create good jobs in the mid to long term.”

He continued, “Looking at the ‘December 2019 and annual employment trends’ announced by Statistics Korea on the 15th, there was an increase in jobs under 17 hours such as part-time work, a decrease in employment rates among men in their 30s to 50s, and an increase in those who have given up job seeking. The employment status by working hours shows that for those working less than 36 hours, the number increased by 102,000 (10.2%) to 482,000 at the end of last year compared to the end of 2018. Especially, employment for 1 to 17 hours increased significantly by 357,000 (23.1%).”

He also pointed out, “The employment rate for those aged 40 to 49 decreased by 0.6% from 79% in 2018 to 78.4% in 2019, and particularly for men, it decreased by 0.7% in their 30s, 0.8% in their 40s, and 0.8% in their 50s. Regarding those who have given up job seeking, the number increased from 481,000 in 2017 to 533,000 in 2019, a 9.7% increase compared to 2017.”

He added, “Men in their 30s to 50s are mostly the heads of households with dependents and serve as the backbone supporting our families and society. If they continue to be pushed out onto the streets, it is obvious as seeing fire that a dark shadow will be cast over the future of our society.”