Despite COVID-19 and Semiconductor Crisis... Hyundai Motor Achieves Record High Employment

At the End of Q3, Domestic Workforce Reaches Record High of 71,666
Employment Commitment Shown Despite Growing Pressure to Reduce Staff Due to Electric Vehicle Transition

[Asia Economy Reporter Changhwan Lee] Hyundai Motor Company has been expanding employment despite various adversities such as the semiconductor supply shortage and COVID-19. This contrasts with global automakers like General Motors (GM), Renault, and Volkswagen, which have been continuously reducing employment during the transition to electric vehicles.

According to Hyundai Motor on the 17th, the number of domestic employees at the end of the third quarter this year reached 71,666. This is 1,022 more than the 70,644 recorded at the end of the first half of this year, marking the largest scale ever.

It is the second-largest employment scale for a single domestic company after Samsung Electronics. Hyundai Motor first surpassed 60,000 employees in 2013, broke through 70,000 in 2019, and has continued to expand employment up to this year.

Hyundai Motor's employment expansion is considered more meaningful as it has been achieved amid various internal and external adversities. In particular, despite repeated shutdowns of domestic and overseas factories and vehicle production cuts due to the vehicle semiconductor supply shortage that began at the end of last year, employment was not reduced but increased.

The prolonged COVID-19 pandemic is also a negative factor for the automotive industry. Global automakers are facing significant difficulties due to decreased vehicle sales and performance caused by COVID-19.

The rapidly advancing transition to electric vehicles also poses a significant burden on automaker employment. Electric vehicles have more than 30% fewer automotive parts compared to internal combustion engine vehicles, shortening the production process and thus requiring fewer personnel.

The Employment Stability Committee, formed by Hyundai Motor's labor and management, predicted at the end of 2019 that essential automotive manufacturing personnel would be reduced by at least 20% and up to 40% over the next 5 to 10 years due to the transition to electric vehicles.

Unlike Overseas Automakers' Large-Scale Restructuring, Hyundai Motor Continues Employment Expansion

Major overseas automakers have already undertaken large-scale restructuring during the transition to electric vehicles. Renault announced a large-scale restructuring plan last year to cut 4,600 jobs in France and 14,600 jobs worldwide.

Volkswagen also announced in March this year that it would reduce up to 5,000 production workers. Other automakers such as GM, BMW, and Daimler are also pursuing workforce reductions ranging from thousands to tens of thousands.

However, Hyundai Motor is expanding employment rather than conducting artificial restructuring. This is interpreted as reflecting the will of Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Euisun Chung. Chairman Chung has stated that the transition to eco-friendly vehicles will proceed without employment instability.

In particular, he sees employment expansion through strengthening the hydrogen vehicle business. Hyundai Motor Group expects to produce 500,000 hydrogen vehicles annually by 2030, creating approximately 50,000 new jobs.

Hydrogen vehicles are known to have a greater employment inducement effect than electric vehicles because they have more parts. Byung-hwa Han, a researcher at Eugene Investment & Securities, explained, "Hydrogen vehicles have employment coefficients similar to internal combustion engine vehicles, and since production and charging infrastructure must be expanded, the effect of inducing new employment is excellent."

Chairman Chung plans to meet Prime Minister Kimbukyum on the 22nd to discuss additional employment expansion measures. Earlier, heads of major companies such as Samsung, LG, SK, and POSCO met with the Prime Minister and promised to expand employment by tens of thousands. Hyundai Motor is also expected to discuss plans to expand tens of thousands of youth jobs with the Prime Minister.

Professor Pilsoo Kim of the Department of Future Automotive at Daelim University said, "The automotive industry has a very large employment inducement effect and is very important economically. Hyundai Motor increasing employment despite various difficulties such as the COVID-19 crisis and semiconductor shortages is commendable."

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