People in Their 40s Want Jobs... Government Expands Startup Opportunities

After President Moon's Remarks on Jobs for People in Their 40s

Task Force to Announce Measures Including Startup Support in March

Dedicated Fund Also Under Consideration... Gap with Field Needs

Job Seekers Hope for Jobs of 30 Hours or More per Week

Job Policies Overly Focused on Elderly Also a Problem

[Asia Economy Reporters Kim Min-young, Jang Se-hee] Since President Moon Jae-in called the employment slump among people in their 40s "a very painful issue" last December and instructed the government to prepare tailored measures, government actions have been accelerating. The main content of the government's measures for people in their 40s, scheduled to be announced in March, is expected to focus on startup support. The creation of a dedicated startup fund for people in their 40s is also under consideration. This is due to many unemployed workers in their 40s turning to entrepreneurship.

However, there are criticisms that such policy directions are detached from actual field demand and far from fundamental solutions. Job seekers themselves still prefer stable jobs with at least 30 hours per week rather than startups. Experts advise that job policies for people in their 40s should focus on creating private sector jobs rather than financial input like elderly job programs.

◆ Dedicated Startup Fund for People in Their 40s Also Under Consideration = According to government officials on the 9th, the startup team within the 40s job task force (TF) held its first meeting on the 8th. This came right after President Moon stated in his New Year's address on the 7th, "We will resolve the employment slump among people in their 40s, the backbone of our economy, and in manufacturing," presenting the employment recovery for people in their 40s as a key policy goal this year.

The 40s job TF, co-led by vice ministers of the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Ministry of Employment and Labor, consists of five teams: the startup team led by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, the survey team (Ministry of Employment and Labor), the vocational training, education, and living expenses team (Ministry of Economy and Finance), the employment services team (Ministry of Employment and Labor), and the industry and regional team (Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy). The TF plans to conduct a survey on unemployed job seekers in their 40s and announce tailored job measures for this age group in March.

As seen from the TF composition, one of the government's main measures is expected to be startup support. This includes the establishment of a dedicated fund for people in their 40s. A Financial Services Commission official said, "We plan to create a fund tailored for people in their 40s," adding, "Specific details need further review." The dedicated fund aims to assist with financing, focusing on the fact that prospective entrepreneurs mainly cite lack of funds as a major obstacle to starting a business.

Moon Ji-yeon, a manager at the Ulsan Dong-gu Middle-aged Technology Startup Center, said, "In Ulsan, many people in their 40s who lost jobs due to restructuring in the shipbuilding industry either fail to find reemployment or start technology-based businesses using their skills," adding, "Especially technology startups require significant initial capital, but government support funds are grossly insufficient."

◆ Field Says "We Want Stable Jobs" = However, for people in their 40s who have to support their families, the reality is that they prefer reemployment over startups, which are hard to guarantee success. Mr. Lee (42), preparing for reemployment, said, "People in their 40s want jobs that guarantee wages at the average level for their age because they have to support their families," adding, "Jobs that actually allow retirees to maintain their livelihoods must be guaranteed."

According to the Korea Labor Institute's report on the actual employment hours of wage workers in their 40s last year, the number of workers employed less than 15 hours increased by 18,000; those working 15 to 35 hours increased by 44,000; those working 36 to 44 hours increased by 74,000; those working 45 to 52 hours decreased by 44,000; and those working over 53 hours decreased by 148,000. The largest number of wage workers were employed for 36 to 44 hours, which can also be interpreted as high demand among job seekers for jobs in this time range.

Experts advise that for government policies to be effective, policy development must be directly felt and empathized with by the demand side. Professor Kim Tae-gi of Dankook University's Department of Economics said, "People in their 40s want stable jobs of at least 30 hours," pointing out, "Most government-supported jobs are public jobs tailored to the elderly, which is problematic." He added, "While age-specific tailored policies are important, ultimately fundamental labor policies such as minimum wage and private job creation need to change."

There is also a suggestion that job policies should distinguish between men and women even within the same age group of people in their 40s. Kim Yoo-sun, director of the Labor and Social Research Institute, said, "Men were affected by restructuring in manufacturing and shipbuilding, while women were affected in distribution and retail," adding, "It is urgent to examine job indicators for people in their 40s by gender from a gender perspective and prepare quality job measures suited to gender characteristics."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.