[Inside Chodong] How to Prevent the Exodus of Young Public Officials

The Bank of Korea hired a total of 152 new employees last year, combining both fresh graduates and experienced hires. This was the largest scale since the 2000s. In 2022, they hired 113 people, increasing the hiring scale by 35% in just one year. Despite this, they still face a shortage of staff and plan to hire even more this year compared to last year.

It’s not just the Bank of Korea. Financial public enterprises are significantly increasing their recruitment due to a lack of workers. KDB Industrial Bank plans to hire 160 new employees this year, nearly doubling from 85 last year. The Export-Import Bank of Korea, which recruited 31 people last year, is already in the process of hiring 50 new employees. Other financial public enterprises such as the Financial Supervisory Service, Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation, and Korea Asset Management Corporation are also known to be planning to increase their recruitment scale.

Hiring more people while maintaining the same workplace size means there has been attrition among existing employees. The resignation of young employees has been particularly noticeable over the past few years. Last year, the Bank of Korea had a total of 38 mid-term resignations, of which 22 were employees in their 20s and 30s. Industrial Bank had 87 mid-term resignations last year, with 58 in their 20s and 30s. Among the 49 retirees from the Financial Supervisory Service last year, 13 were in their 20s and 30s.

The outflow of young public officials is also significant. According to the Ministry of Personnel Management, the number of voluntary resignations among grade 5 public officials increased from the 300s in 2020 to the 500s in 2022. In key government departments such as the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Financial Services Commission, more young officials are leaving to pursue other paths such as law school or studying abroad.

These were once companies all called "the best workplaces." They offered high salaries, good social recognition, and a certain level of work-life balance. So why do young employees choose to resign?

We looked for answers on Blind, an anonymous community popular among young workers. "Low salary is the biggest problem," "Not only do they make smart people fools, but they also make them paupers" (Bank of Korea). "High workload and responsibility compared to low salary and benefits," "Low pay despite high qualifications" (Financial Supervisory Service). "Lower pay compared to the private sector," "A low-paying local company without guaranteed work-life balance" (Ministry of Economy and Finance).

As expected, the biggest complaint among employees was salary. Looking more closely, the problem was the low rate of salary increases compared to commercial banks, internet banks, and private companies. The government has set the salary increase rates for financial public enterprises similar to those of public officials. The public official salary increase rates were 0.9% in 2021, 1.4% in 2022, 1.7% in 2023, and 2.5% in 2024, and the financial public enterprises’ salary increase rates were at similar levels.

Meanwhile, consumer price inflation rose sharply at 2.5% in 2021, 5.1% in 2022, and 3.6% in 2023, effectively reducing their real wages. Young employees, who are more sensitive to wages, naturally have greater dissatisfaction. They hope their salaries will at least increase in line with inflation.

The continuous outflow of smart young talents from financial public enterprises should be taken seriously by the government and political circles. They are responsible for creating and managing important economic policies that determine the country’s future, and there are concerns that low morale could lead to unintended outcomes. Ultimately, the damage will fall on the public. Demanding employees to work solely out of a sense of duty to the country without appropriate compensation and treatment is harsh and outdated.