6 out of 10 Companies "Plan New Hiring This Year"… Lowest Since 2022

Only 6 out of 10 domestic companies have plans for new hires this year.

On the 20th, the Korea Employers Federation (KEF) surveyed 500 companies with more than 100 employees, and 60.8% of respondents answered that they have plans for new hires this year. This response rate of 'having plans for new hires' is the lowest since 2022 (72%). The proportion of companies planning new hires has steadily decreased for three consecutive years.

This year, 22.4% responded 'undecided about new hires,' and 16.8% said 'no plans.'

When asked about the scale of hiring among companies with plans, 50.7% said 'similar to last year,' and 13.8% said 'expanding compared to last year.' 'Undecided' accounted for 26.3%, and 9.2% said 'reducing compared to last year.'

The most cited reason for hiring scales being similar to or smaller than last year was 'a conservative workforce operation plan to respond to changes in the business environment' (59.8%).

Regarding hiring methods, 70.8% said 'only irregular hiring,' 22.6% said 'combining regular and irregular hiring,' and 6.6% said 'only regular hiring.'

The timing of hiring was overwhelmingly 'whenever workforce demand arises without a specific period' at 85.8%.

The most urgent job positions for hiring were 'manufacturing, technology, and skilled labor' (26.0%), 'production management' (25.8%), 'ICT (Information and Communication Technology) and R&D (Research and Development)' (22.2%), 'planning and marketing' (17.0%), and 'HR and finance' (12.2%) in that order.

Lim Young-tae, head of the Employment and Social Policy Division at KEF, said, "Due to the recent deepening domestic demand slump and concerns over a tariff war originating from the U.S., the hiring market is expected to freeze more than last year," adding, "The government needs to expand financial support for programs that provide work experience to unemployed youth through supplementary budgets and other measures."