Chuncheon Launches Diversification, Stabilization, and Advancement of Public Jobs
Public Job System Overhauled with Customized Designs by Age and Characteristics
Four Major Job Sectors for Youth, Seniors, and People with Disabilities
Chuncheon City in Gangwon Province (Mayor Yuk Donghan) is set to pursue a qualitative transformation of its Chuncheon-style public jobs this year. The city will reorganize its public job system through customized designs tailored to different ages and characteristics, aiming to provide a record-high 8,695 jobs.
This year, under the three main goals of diversification, stabilization, and advancement, the city will move beyond simply increasing the number of jobs and will focus on a qualitative transformation of public jobs through customized design based on age and individual characteristics. The core of this year's Chuncheon-style public jobs is to respond to a super-aged society and to restructure the system into social contribution and competency-based jobs.
In 2026, Chuncheon-style public jobs will be offered in four categories: 140 positions for youth administrative experience, 400 positions for Hope, Happiness, and Local Community jobs, 7,865 positions for senior jobs and social activity support, and 290 positions for jobs for people with disabilities, totaling 8,695 jobs.
The youth administrative experience program has expanded its target group from local university students to all young people aged 19 to 45. The selection process has also been adjusted from prioritizing vulnerable groups to a 50% priority for vulnerable groups and 50% for the general population, thus broadening participation opportunities. In fact, since the start of the winter youth administrative experience program on January 5, the participant base has shifted from mainly early-20s university students to include more young people in their 30s and non-students, reflecting these changes.
Participating youths will support administrative work and gain on-site experience at civil service offices, township and neighborhood administrative welfare centers, cultural and sports facilities, and facilities for children and adolescents. Through this, they will deepen their understanding of city administration and build their employment skills.
The Hope, Happiness, and Local Community jobs have previously faced issues such as confusion over application periods and repeated or overlapping participation, as similar programs were recruited and operated at different times.
To address this, the city will integrate the Hope Jobs, Happiness Jobs, and Local Community Jobs into a single system, allowing participants to apply during the same period while distinguishing applications by project type. The application period will be standardized to twice a year, in the first and second halves. This year, a total of 400 people (200 per session) will participate, with a focus on community-centered work such as village improvement, public facility management, administrative support, care, safety, and living environment maintenance.
Senior jobs have been expanded to 7,865 positions, an increase of 458 from the previous year (7,407). In response to the super-aged society, the structure has shifted away from mainly public interest activities to focus on integrated care, safety, and living support jobs.
The city will expand community public interest jobs such as senior-to-senior care, neighborhood improvement, and senior environmental guardians, strengthening roles in daily care and living environment management.
Additionally, the city will increase competency-based jobs that leverage experience and expertise, such as local culture recorders, safety management, and forest interpreters, so that the wisdom and experience of seniors can contribute to the community while also enhancing their pride and professionalism. Income-generating community business groups and employment linked to external demand sources will also be promoted, expanding opportunities for continuous social participation and self-reliance among seniors.
For jobs for people with disabilities, the city plans to address the difficulty of finding suitable roles tailored to different types and characteristics of disabilities, which has posed challenges for operating organizations and developing new projects.
The city will increase the number of organizations operating jobs for people with disabilities from eight to nine and strengthen monitoring of accessibility facilities in multi-use venues. In addition to administrative support jobs, the city has expanded community-based jobs such as environmental maintenance, meal support, mobility safety support, peer counseling, and disability awareness improvement activities. Specialized projects such as massage services for the visually impaired and multi-purpose public jobs in partnership with the private sector will also continue to be operated.
The number of public jobs in Chuncheon has been steadily increasing, with 6,632 participants in 2023, 7,679 in 2024, and 8,297 in 2025. The city plans to diversify the participating groups and job sectors, strengthen operational stability and the social contribution function of public jobs, and introduce job training and participant evaluations, aiming to develop public jobs from 'short-term support' into a 'stepping stone for growth.'
Mayor Yuk Donghan of Chuncheon stated, "Public jobs must now shift from a policy of increasing numbers to one that enhances roles and values," adding, "We will ensure that participation and growth continue through jobs tailored to different ages and circumstances."
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