Korea Federation of SMEs Announces Results of 'Youth Job-Seeking Status and Employment Perception Survey'
Six out of ten young job seekers experience difficulties in obtaining or utilizing information about the jobs they wish to apply for. The Korea Federation of SMEs (Chairman Kim Ki-moon) announced the results of the '2023 Youth Job Seeking Status and Job Perception Survey' conducted from October 20 to November 1, targeting 1,000 young job seekers, on the 5th.
According to the survey results, 63.8% of young job seekers responded that it is difficult to obtain information about hiring companies. In last year's survey, young job seekers also identified 'obtaining company information (29.4%)' and 'acquiring recruitment information (20.6%)' as the most challenging aspects of their job search activities. This year, similarly, the highest response indicated difficulties in acquiring information. This indicates that the information asymmetry phenomenon still occurs, where the information young job seekers need and the information provided by recruiting companies do not match.
The main channels through which young job seekers obtain company and recruitment information are job information websites (60.7%), followed by company websites (42.7%), online and offline job fairs (36.5%), and on-campus employment support centers (33.8%). Particularly, among those whose highest education level is high school, opinions that these channels are 'not helpful' were higher across all information acquisition routes. This is interpreted as most information being organized primarily for those with a 'four-year university degree or higher.' It appears necessary to develop and improve recruitment information acquisition channels according to educational background in the future.
Meanwhile, 64.4% of young job seekers considered employment at small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which is similar to the previous year. The reasons were ranked as 'quick employment in the desired job category' (64.9%), 'high proximity between residence and workplace' (34.0%), and 'possibility of rapid promotion and job growth' (24.5%).
On the other hand, reasons for not considering employment at SMEs were 'low salary levels' (55.3%), 'poor work culture' (29.5%), and 'concerns about job instability' (28.4%). The perceptions of job seekers regarding employment at SMEs have not significantly changed compared to the previous year.
Regarding experience using job support programs, more than half of job seekers (50.9%) had no experience using such programs, with the biggest reason for not using them being 'I don't think it will actually help me get a job' (28.5%). In response to questions about the utilization of SME youth job policies, those without experience (77.3%) were 3.4 times higher than those with experience (22.7%). The main reasons for not utilizing SME youth job policies were 'no support policies matching the conditions' (37.6%), followed by 'not knowing about the implementation of youth employment support policies and services' (30.7%).
Lee Myung-ro, Head of the Human Resources Policy Division at the Korea Federation of SMEs, stated, "We found that it is necessary to provide customized recruitment information according to the educational background and preferred job roles of young job seekers and to encourage companies to actively provide company information." He added, "The Korea Federation of SMEs operates the 'Cham Ggwaenchanheun Jungso Gieop (Pretty Good SMEs) platform,' focusing on providing information that allows users to view recruitment information at a glance through connections with job sites such as Worknet, JobKorea, and Saramin. We will strive to discover good SMEs and help young people find employment in the jobs and companies they desire."
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