Gyeongnam Provincial Council Adopts Resolution Urging Extension of Employment Crisis Area Designation

Regular session plenary meeting of the Gyeongnam Provincial Council. (Photo by Gyeongnam Provincial Council)

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Ju-cheol In] The Gyeongnam Provincial Council adopted the "Government Appeal to Extend the Employment Crisis Area Designation Period in Gyeongnam Province" at the 5th plenary session of the 390th regular meeting held on the 26th.

This appeal, jointly proposed by Kim Seong-gap (Geoje 1) of the Democratic Party of Korea, urges the extension of the employment crisis area designation period for Jinhae-gu in Changwon City, Geoje City, Tongyeong City, and Goseong County, which is set to expire on the 31st of next month.

These four regions were designated as employment crisis areas in April 2018 due to an unprecedented shipbuilding industry recession. Despite efforts to recover employment, the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, which was unforeseen, has led to continued economic stagnation in these areas.

Although there has recently been a recovery in orders centered on large shipbuilding companies, there is a time lag of at least one to two years before this translates into employment effects on the ground. Moreover, due to a sharp decline in orders over the past five years, next year is expected to be even more challenging.

In fact, the employment rate in Changwon City remains below the national average, and Geoje City has recorded its lowest employment rate since 2017.

Tongyeong City ranked third nationwide with an unemployment rate of 4.7% as of the first half of this year, and Goseong County has the highest unemployment rate among all counties nationwide.

Earlier, on the 29th of last month, Gyeongnam Province submitted an application to the Ministry of Employment and Labor to extend the employment crisis area designation period for these four cities and counties.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor is expected to hold an employment policy review meeting in December to decide whether to extend the designation period, based on the results of the on-site inspection conducted by the public-private joint investigation team on the 23rd.

Assemblyman Kim Seong-gap emphasized, "The shipbuilding industry has experienced a long-term recession, causing many workers to leave, making it difficult to maintain skilled labor and secure new personnel. Continuous government support is necessary to overcome this crisis well and revive the stagnant local economy."

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