Significant Increase in Standard Labor Costs for Four Consecutive Years, Cumulative Addition of 120 Standard Staff Members
New AI Smart City Division, Integrated Care, Healthy City, and Forest Recreation Teams Established
Ultimately, administration comes down to people and costs.
Yangsan City in South Gyeongsang Province has secured next year’s standard staffing and standard labor costs at an unprecedented level compared to other local governments, thanks to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety. This has created an opportunity to elevate the city's organizational competitiveness to a new level.
On December 29, Yangsan City was notified of the results for the calculation of standard staffing and standard labor costs, which will serve as the foundation for the city’s organizational and personnel operations next year.
Despite the central government’s policy of freezing local government staffing at 2022 levels, Yangsan City has achieved significant results by securing a substantial increase in standard labor costs for four consecutive years from 2023 to 2026, as well as a cumulative increase of 120 standard staff positions.
The securing of standard labor costs and standard staffing has served as a key driving force for sustainable growth, enabling the operation of the Disaster and Safety Situation Room and addressing both national policies and local aspirations, such as the Hwangsan Park Complex Leisure Project and the Hoiyagang Renaissance Project. With the newly secured standard staffing and labor costs, the city plans to use these resources to drive organizational reform and performance, including the establishment of one new division and nine new teams, such as the AI Smart City Division, and the addition of 57 staff members next year.
▲ Three consecutive years of excellence in the Ministry of the Interior and Safety’s “Organizational Operation Efficiency Evaluation” as a catalyst
Yangsan City cited its selection as an excellent local government for three consecutive years, from 2022 to 2024, in the “Organizational Operation Efficiency Evaluation” conducted by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety as the background for securing a significant increase in standard labor costs and staffing.
The city has boldly reduced declining administrative functions, redeployed staff to focus on core projects, and made self-driven efforts to reduce standard labor costs. It has also improved the overall organizational environment in line with the Ministry’s “Measures to Create Conditions for Focused Work by Civil Servants,” such as granting self-development leave to civil servants with less than five years of service.
▲ Dedicated Task Force (TF) and joint public-private organizational diagnosis team’s proactive efforts and justification
Focusing on strengthening organizational capabilities to achieve municipal goals and create results, Yangsan City has operated a dedicated organizational diagnosis task force (TF) since April 1, 2025.
In addition, the city increased the number of civilian members in the joint public-private organizational diagnosis team to three this year, enhancing the objectivity and reliability of the organizational diagnosis by participating in the analysis and diagnosis process and providing advisory functions, such as proposing organizational efficiency measures.
The dedicated task force and the joint public-private organizational diagnosis team conducted a thorough analysis of new administrative demands, reviewed the workload and appropriate staffing for each department, and developed more efficient organizational operation plans. Through the creation of conditions for focused work, the city carried out an organizational diagnosis to lay the foundation for providing high-quality administrative services to citizens.
This objective analysis played a decisive role in securing standard labor costs, and it is assessed that Yangsan City effectively conveyed the necessity of increasing standard staffing to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, eliciting strong agreement.
▲ Results of close communication with the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the National Assembly, and adoption of a proposal by the Yangsan City Council
Yangsan City’s all-out efforts to secure standard staffing were also notable. In October, the city held a policy meeting with aides to National Assembly members at the National Assembly Members’ Office Building in Seoul, requesting active interest and cooperation for increasing standard staffing to implement national policies and improve the organizational environment.
In September and October, the city visited the Government Complex Sejong to discuss with the Ministry of the Interior and Safety the need for increased standard staffing to meet Yangsan’s unique policy and administrative demands, such as integrated care support, AI smart city development, and operation of the Yangsan urban railway line. In the same month, during a video conference explaining organizational management guidelines to the Ministry and local governments, the city continued efforts to persuade and build consensus on the staffing needs for local priority projects.
Furthermore, the Yangsan City Council adopted a “Proposal to Increase Standard Labor Costs” during the first regular session in June 2025, following a similar effort in 2023, and delivered it to the National Assembly, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, and other relevant agencies, making a significant contribution to securing standard labor costs.
▲ Secured standard staffing to be used as a driving force for organizational operation in 2026
The secured standard staffing and labor costs will be utilized for the 2026 organizational restructuring and operations. The city plans to establish one new division and nine new teams, including the AI Smart City Division, Integrated Care Support, Healthy City, Railway Operation, and Forest Recreation teams, to maximize performance and increase citizen satisfaction.
In line with the government’s “AI Transformation” policy, the newly established AI Smart City Division will serve as a control tower for expanding data- and AI-based administration and building a smart administrative system. The creation of nine new teams will allow the city to proactively address issues such as low birth rates and an aging population, and to strengthen expertise as a citizen-centered organization by promoting healthy living and a safe food environment.
With this organizational restructuring, the city will be reorganized into eight bureaus, three offices, 53 divisions, one branch office, three direct agencies, and four business offices. The total number of staff will increase by 57 to 1,454. In particular, to enhance the city’s capacity to respond to civil complaints, staffing at town and township offices will be reinforced to create conditions for focused work by junior civil servants. The additional staff will be assigned first to the newly established divisions and teams, and as staffing increases, the city plans to gradually fill and allocate positions based on future workload and administrative demand.
A Yangsan City official stated, “This achievement is the result of Yangsan City officials working as one and communicating with the City Council, the National Assembly, and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety. Based on the secured staff, we will create an administrative turning point that adds a human touch to AI-driven innovation, delivering warm and tangible governance that citizens can truly feel.”
Yangsan City Hall.
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