Recruitment Freezes Amid Industry Slump
No Openings for Sales, Marketing, or Management Support This Year
Preference for Cost-Effective, Immediately Deployable Contract and Experienced Hires
The battery industry winter caused by the electric vehicle and battery chasm (Chasm: temporary demand stagnation) is freezing the related recruitment market. Companies are reducing the scale and job positions for hiring, and even those are mostly contract positions as they focus on cost-cutting.
According to the industry on the 12th, battery companies such as LG Energy Solution, Samsung SDI, and SK On have started their first half recruitment from early this month.
The most noticeable change in this recruitment announcement is at Samsung SDI. In the second half of last year, they recruited for nine positions including management support, sales marketing, technology, and quality, but this year they have started hiring only for technical positions. Samsung is the only one among the five major domestic groups (Samsung, SK, Hyundai Motor, LG, Lotte) to maintain the regular open recruitment system for new employees this year, and the significant reduction in job positions at Samsung SDI is seen by the industry as a reflection of the difficult industry situation.
The situation is similar at other battery cell companies. LG Energy Solution is conducting recruitment in the form of occasional hiring rather than regular open recruitment. Compared to the occasional hiring conducted around the same time last year, there is a noticeable difference in the positions being recruited. In March last year, they recruited for sales & marketing, purchasing, staff and research & development (R&D), and production technology positions, but this year they are only recruiting for R&D and production technology positions.
SK On has opened 13 positions for occasional hiring, but most are experienced or contract positions. An industry insider said, "It seems to reflect a tendency to prefer personnel who can be immediately deployed rather than new hires," adding, "It is interpreted as a strategy to reduce costs and increase flexibility in workforce management."
Earlier, SK On and LG Energy Solution declared emergency management from last year and started tightening their belts. In September last year, SK On accepted voluntary retirement and also implemented unpaid leave for self-development with tuition support for up to two years. LG Energy Solution also implemented various cost-cutting measures including travel expenses. When executives travel overseas for less than 8 hours, they are required to fly economy class, and the company is promoting organizational efficiency by reallocating internal personnel.
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