At the End of 2018, Industrial Technology Workforce Reaches 1.661 Million, Up 1.7%... Increase in 'Bio, Semiconductor, and SW' Sectors

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] At the end of 2018, the number of industrial technology personnel reached 1,661,446, an increase of 1.7% compared to the previous year. By industry, bio-health, semiconductors, and software (SW) sectors once again recorded high growth rates following the end of 2017.

On the 22nd, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced the results of the "2019 Industrial Technology Workforce Supply and Demand Survey," which contained these details.

Industrial technology personnel refer to those with a high school diploma or higher who work in businesses as researchers, technical staff, production or information communication-related managers, or corporate executives.

As of the end of last year, the proportion of industrial technology personnel was 34.1% of the total, slightly up from 34% in 2017. The number of industrial technology personnel was 1,661,446, with a shortage of 37,484, increasing by 1.7% and 1.6% respectively compared to the previous year, while the shortage rate remained at 2.2%, the same level as the previous year.

By industry, bio-health (5.1%), semiconductors (2.6%), SW (2.6%), and automobile (1.9%) industries showed high growth rates in industrial technology personnel. Among these, bio-health (5.8%), semiconductors (4.6%), and SW (4.3%) also showed growth rates in 2017. However, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the bio-health sector continues to report persistent personnel shortages.

On the other hand, shipbuilding (-4.9%), steel (-2.2%), chemical (-1%), and display (-0.9%) industries experienced declines.

The structural problem of lower growth rates and higher shortage rates of industrial technology personnel in smaller businesses was repeated.

Compared to the shortage rate of large-scale businesses with 500 or more employees, small and medium-sized businesses with fewer than 300 employees had a shortage rate 7.8 times higher. Medium-sized businesses with 300 to 499 employees had a shortage rate twice that of large-scale businesses.

Small and medium-sized enterprises also faced difficulties in securing highly skilled personnel. Comparing the shortage rates of industrial technology personnel with graduate degrees, small and medium-sized businesses had a shortage rate of 4.3%, nearly five times that of large-scale businesses at 0.9%.

At the end of last year, both the growth rate of industrial technology personnel and the shortage rate increased with higher educational attainment. This is interpreted as a qualitative mismatch phenomenon where, despite an increase in highly skilled personnel, shortages are still reported.

At the end of 2017, higher education levels corresponded to lower growth rates but higher shortage rates; however, by the end of 2018, despite an increase in personnel, companies appeared unable to effectively utilize highly skilled personnel.

The aging problem in small and medium-sized enterprises worsened. The proportion of middle-aged workers aged 50 and above was highest in small and medium-sized businesses, while the proportion of workers in their 20s and 30s was highest in medium-sized businesses.

Resignations, job openings, hires, unfilled positions, and expected hires all increased compared to the previous year.

The number of resignations was 155,382, up 2.6% from the previous year. Early resignations within one year of joining were 61,604, an increase of 5.2% compared to the previous year. The early resignation rates were 41.7% in 2015, 40.1% in 2016, 40.6% in 2017, and 42.2% in 2018.

Job openings numbered 152,424, a 0.3% increase from the previous year. Hires were 145,944, up 1.3% from the previous year. Unfilled positions numbered 15,357, a 6.1% increase from the previous year.

By gender, males numbered 1,436,000, an increase of 1.6% from the previous year, and females numbered 225,000, up 2.1% from the previous year.

This survey was conducted on 13,048 businesses nationwide with 10 or more employees. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology have been conducting the industrial technology workforce supply and demand survey since 2005.

An official from the Ministry said, "Based on this survey result, the budget for the Industrial Innovation Talent Growth Support Project, which trains master's and doctoral-level researchers based on industry demand, will be increased from 90.1 billion won last year to 101.5 billion won this year," adding, "We plan to establish new training programs for specialized researchers in the bio-health and chemical fields, which continue to report persistent personnel shortages."

He continued, "To resolve qualitative and quantitative workforce mismatches, we will strengthen the industry's demand transmission function so that industry workforce needs can be systematically communicated to universities and vocational training institutions," and "We will forecast workforce supply and demand for future promising new industries and key industries based on 2030 standards within the first half of the year."

The Ministry identified digital healthcare, smart and eco-friendly ships, aviation drones, future automobiles, and intelligent robots as future promising new industries.

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