'Aftermath of COVID-19'... LG Deliberates on First Half New Graduate Recruitment

Electronics Unable to Confirm First Half Recruitment Schedule
LGD and Innotek Decide Not to Proceed

[Asia Economy Reporter Dongwoo Lee] LG Group and its major affiliates are reducing the number of open recruitments for new college graduate hires in the first half of this year and are focusing on workforce supply through experienced and occasional recruitment. This is the result of a complex interplay of internal and external risks, including safety concerns related to large-scale hiring amid the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and management uncertainties.

According to industry sources on the 19th, LG Electronics has yet to finalize the schedule for new graduate recruitment in the first half of this year. LG Electronics has traditionally conducted first-half recruitment from late April to early May every year.

Inside LG Electronics, it is known that there is deliberation over whether and how to conduct large-scale recruitment due to COVID-19. They are also considering introducing non-face-to-face methods, such as replacing the written exam for new college graduate recruitment in the first half of this year with an online test, similar to Samsung Electronics. However, concerns about COVID-19 safety and LG Group's recent preference for occasional recruitment over large-scale open recruitment raise the possibility of skipping the first-half recruitment schedule.

An LG Electronics official said, "No decisions have been made yet regarding whether to proceed with the first-half recruitment schedule or the procedures. Although recruitment was conducted in both the first and second halves last year, the schedule can be flexibly adjusted each year depending on the situation."

In fact, LG affiliates such as LG Display, LG Innotek, and LG Chem have decided not to conduct new college graduate open recruitment in the first half of this year. LG Display, which recorded a large operating loss of about 1.3 trillion won last year and a deficit of 362 billion won in the first quarter of this year, will not conduct new graduate recruitment in the first half due to worsening management conditions. However, it is conducting occasional experienced recruitment for certain positions such as IT marketing experts and overseas legal affairs.

LG Innotek also plans to conduct one round of new college graduate recruitment in the second half of this year instead of the first half. An LG Innotek official explained, "We have internally decided not to conduct large-scale open recruitment in the first half of this year. If vacancies arise, we will comprehensively review and recruit essential personnel."

LG Chem is also managing workforce supply through a 'Continuous Talent Registration System' instead of new graduate open recruitment in the first half of this year. This system targets experienced applicants who are undergraduate and graduate students (master’s and doctoral) at overseas universities. The Continuous Talent Registration System allows applicants to submit resumes and other documents at any time without a deadline, and the company reviews them periodically and individually notifies candidates about recruitment schedules.

An LG Group official said, "Since 2000, instead of group-wide open recruitment, each affiliate has been recruiting personnel through various channels such as occasional and experienced recruitment to secure diverse talents. It is difficult to regard only large-scale new graduate open recruitment as regular hiring."

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