SKT and Korea Employment Agency for the Disabled Join Hands to Promote ICT Jobs for People with Disabilities

"Contributing to Building a 'Employment Safety Net for People with Disabilities' through Jobs Utilizing 5G and AI"

SK Telecom signed a business agreement with the Korea Employment Agency for the Disabled to establish an ICT-based job platform for people with disabilities through a video conference. Participants at the signing ceremony are holding a COVID-19 overcoming message created by the Korea Employment Agency for the Disabled and posing for a commemorative photo.
[Photo by SK Telecom]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] SK Telecom is expanding the employment safety net for people with disabilities by utilizing the latest ICT technologies in the 5G era.

SK Telecom announced on the 12th that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Korea Employment Agency for the Disabled to establish an ICT-based job platform for people with disabilities.

This agreement was made to create a virtuous cycle program related to the job ecosystem for people with disabilities, enabling them to grow as specialized professionals in the ICT field in response to changes in job trends caused by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic and accelerated digital transformation. It is an applied case of the "Creation of a Job Ecosystem for People with Disabilities," jointly planned by the Presidential Committee on Jobs and SK Telecom.

Based on SK Telecom's ICT capabilities, SK Telecom and the Korea Employment Agency for the Disabled plan to establish an integrated support system that provides tailored IT job training by disability type, job information provision and connection, and post-employment management, supporting education throughout the life cycle.

This agreement is the first case in which the Agency has formed a partnership with a private company related to building jobs for people with disabilities. Both parties expect to maximize the synergy they possess to solve companies' concerns about hiring disabled talent and expand the provision of quality jobs for people with disabilities, thereby strengthening the employment safety net for people with disabilities.

On the 20th, they will co-host the "Assistive Technology Device Contest for People with Disabilities in ICT," organized by the Ministry of Employment and Labor. This is to create assistive technology devices that can help improve the work environment for people with disabilities using ICT technology and to foster innovative companies in the related field.

Applicants can submit proposals on the related website (www.true-inno.com) by the 19th of next month. After announcing the five teams that will compete in the final contest on September 25, the final rankings will be determined based on prototype development and mentoring results, with follow-up support for idea commercialization. One grand prize team will receive a prize of 10 million KRW and the Minister of Employment and Labor Award, while the other four teams will receive a total of 12 million KRW in prize money and the Chairman’s Award of the Korea Employment Agency for the Disabled.

Since August last year, SK Telecom has been leading efforts to create jobs and improve work environments for people with disabilities by establishing a subsidiary-type standard workplace for people with disabilities and continuously cooperating with the social venture "Co-Actors" to support the "Silent Taxi," driven by hearing-impaired drivers. Additionally, SK Telecom has developed 14 types of software education programs tailored to different disability types and is conducting the "Happy Coding School" project for over 1,000 students across more than 100 schools nationwide. It has also operated the largest nationwide ICT festival for disabled youth, the "Makerthon Competition," for 21 years.

Woo Woong-hwan, Head of SK Telecom’s SV Innovation Center, said, "We will take the lead in expanding quality jobs where people with disabilities can work happily by utilizing the ICT technology we possess. We will continue to build a tightly knit social safety net supporting vulnerable groups throughout our society."