Government to Train Over 2,000 Future Car Specialists Next Year... Strengthening Support for Future Vehicle Transition

Ministry of Industry and Others Hold 'Automotive Industry Workforce Project Briefing'... Investment Subsidies, Tax Deduction Products, and Loan Support

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Haeyoung] The government will nurture about 2,000 specialized personnel next year to support the rapid transition of the automobile industry to future vehicles. It will subsidize various investment costs necessary for job transitions to the future vehicle sector and also support various savings products and loans for employees of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Ministry of Employment and Labor, and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups held a joint 'Automobile Industry Workforce Project Briefing' on the 2nd at the Gwangju Regional Headquarters of the Korea Industrial Complex Corporation and announced these plans.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy plans to increase investment in workforce development projects from 10.5 billion KRW this year to 25.9 billion KRW next year, and expand the scale of workforce development from 1,100 people to 2,300 people in line with the paradigm shift from internal combustion engines to future vehicles.

Specifically, a new project called 'Future Vehicle Business Restructuring Preparation Workforce Capacity Building' will be launched next year, operating educational courses related to strategy establishment and business planning for future vehicle transition, as well as core technology research and development (R&D) such as eco-friendly vehicles, autonomous driving, and connected cars. After procedures such as selecting educational institutions and developing curricula, the plan is to train 270 people annually from the second quarter of next year, including 100 leaders and 170 practitioners.

The 'Future Vehicle On-site Workforce Training Project' will add the Honam and Gangwon regions as target areas from next year and expand the number of trainees from 600 this year to 920 next year.

For middle-aged unemployed individuals, the government will also promote the 'On-site Close Vocational Training Support Project,' which provides courses in automation control (smart factory) and quality management in the automobile sector, and supports employment packages linked with the Ministry of Employment and Labor's Worknet.

Additionally, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy plans to nurture a total of 1,200 highly skilled master's and doctoral-level personnel with practical capabilities in eco-friendly vehicles and autonomous driving by 2026. To expand future vehicle convergence majors in undergraduate programs nationwide, 15 universities will be selected and supported over three years from next year to 2024 using the Ministry of Education's 'Innovative Talent Nurturing Project' platform.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor will provide organizational and job redesign as well as education and training programs necessary for future vehicle transition to automobile parts companies through consulting on the National Competency Standards (NCS) for corporate use. It will also support wages and training costs to enable job transitions through paid leave training while employed.

Furthermore, the ministry plans to select industries urgently needing vocational training and expand 'specialized training for industrial structural change response' by discovering and improving training courses desired by industries and workers. The Labor Transition Specialized Joint Training Center will subsidize equipment construction costs up to 100 million KRW in the first year and up to 500 million KRW from the second to fifth years when companies, universities, or research institutes provide job transition training to employees (including prospective hires).

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups will support 65-100% of tuition fees for degree acquisition through SME contract departments for employees of SMEs. To expand the hiring and dispatch work of emerging researchers with high experience from research institutes, universities, and companies, it plans to subsidize about 50% of the annual labor costs for research personnel. Additionally, it will operate various Tomorrow Savings Deduction products to help SME employees accumulate lump sums and encourage long-term employment, and will also promote loan support amounting to 300 billion KRW.

Moreover, a 'Structural Innovation Support Center' that provides integrated support for business and labor transitions will be newly established next year, and the 'Special Act on Promotion of Business Transition for SMEs' will be amended to expand the scope of support.

The joint ministry workforce project briefing will be held sequentially starting with the Honam region (Gwangju) on the day, followed by the Southeast region (Ulsan) on the 7th, the Chungcheong region (Cheonan) on the 9th, the Daegu-Gyeongbuk region (Daegu) on the 14th, and the Seoul metropolitan area (Seoul) on the 16th.