Gyeonggi-do Implements Voluntary Driver's License Surrender Program for Elderly
Bus Companies Welcome 'Beginners and Elderly' Amid Hiring Shortage
There are concerns that the shortage of village bus drivers is worsening in the Ilsan area of Gyeonggi Province. It is said that finding drivers is not easy, to the extent that even elderly drivers are welcomed.
On the 7th, Maeil Business Newspaper reported job advertisements for village bus drivers operating in the Ilsan area of Gyeonggi Province. According to the advertisement, anyone with a Class 1 large vehicle driver's license is welcome, including beginners and elderly drivers. The working condition is an alternate day shift (13 to 15 days per month), with a monthly salary ranging from 3.11 million to 3.5 million KRW. Employment support for Seoul buses, fully equipped dormitories, and the four major insurances are also provided.
Driver recruitment advertisement posted on a village bus operating in the Ilsan area of Gyeonggi-do [Photo by Maeil Business Newspaper]
While Gyeonggi Province has implemented a voluntary driver's license return system for drivers aged 65 and older to promote safe driving, the bus company facing a driver shortage has opened its doors to elderly applicants as well.
The shortage of village bus drivers is known to be a nationwide phenomenon, not limited to Ilsan in Gyeonggi Province. One analysis suggests that due to the spread of COVID-19, many have switched to delivery jobs, which offer better pay than village buses. It is also said that the shortage is more severe in village buses than in city buses, making it difficult to supply experienced drivers smoothly.
The situation is similar not only in Seoul and the Gyeonggi metropolitan area but also in other local governments. In December last year, as bus companies in the Busan area struggled to recruit drivers for city and village buses, Busan City formed a task force (TF).
According to data submitted by Busan City from the city bus industry at that time, last year local city bus companies tried to hire 718 drivers but only managed to recruit 354, which is 49.3%. For this reason, companies responded by having existing staff work additional shifts or reemploying retirees as contract workers.
Meanwhile, major local governments outside Gyeonggi Province are encouraging elderly drivers to voluntarily return their driver's licenses amid a series of traffic accidents involving elderly drivers. Seoul City plans to provide a prepaid transportation card loaded with 100,000 KRW on a first-come, first-served basis to about 29,000 elderly drivers aged 70 and over who voluntarily return their licenses at community centers.
Some local governments provide local gift certificates. Icheon City in Gyeonggi Province gives 100,000 KRW in local currency to drivers aged 65 and over, and Seosan City in Chungcheongnam-do provides Seosan Love Gift Certificates worth 100,000 KRW to drivers aged 70 and over. Paju in Gyeonggi Province, Hoengseong and Pyeongchang in Gangwon Province, Okcheon in Chungbuk, and others offer local currency worth about 300,000 KRW to elderly drivers who voluntarily return their licenses, while Miryang in Gyeongnam provides 200,000 KRW in local currency.
It is uncertain whether increasing support funds will lead to the effect of license returns. According to the ‘2023 Driver Traffic Safety Awareness Survey’ conducted by AXA Insurance from October 23 to 24 last year targeting 1,400 licensed drivers aged 19 and over, only 22.9% said they intended to voluntarily return their license when they turned 65.
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