Seoul City and Taxi Industry Launch Major Expansion of Transportation Workers... First 'Job Fair' Held

'2021 Seoul Corporate Taxi Employment Fair' Held at Jamsil Transportation Hall from 8th to 10th
Corporate Taxi Drivers Decreased by Over 30% Before and After COVID-19... Corporate Taxi Operation Rate Only 34%

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on the 5th that it will hold a large-scale job fair in collaboration with the Seoul Taxi Transportation Business Association to significantly increase the number of corporate taxi drivers, which has decreased by more than 30% due to the impact of COVID-19. The goal is to alleviate the severe taxi shortage during late-night hours caused by the phased recovery of daily life and the year-end and New Year holidays, while also easing the business difficulties faced by the corporate taxi industry due to the shortage of taxi drivers.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, the number of corporate taxi drivers decreased by 31.4%, from 30,527 in 2019 to 20,955 as of last October, due to a drop in passengers and a sharp decline in income caused by COVID-19. Consequently, the operating rate of corporate taxis remains at only 34.47%.

The taxi industry plans to make every effort to recruit drivers through this job fair by providing a total employment settlement allowance of 600,000 KRW per person to those who get employed, and fully covering the costs required to obtain taxi driver qualifications (91,500 KRW per person). The employment settlement allowance will be paid by corporate taxi companies to drivers, providing an additional 200,000 KRW per month for three months on top of their salary. This benefit will be given not only to new hires but also to drivers who rejoin through the job fair.

The job fair will be held for three days from the 8th to the 10th at the first-floor convention hall of the Jamsil Transportation Hall. This is the first job fair dedicated to recruiting corporate taxi drivers. Anyone with a driver’s license who wishes to work for a corporate taxi company can participate. Among the 254 corporate taxi companies in Seoul, 125 companies that agreed to provide the employment settlement allowance have confirmed their participation in this fair.

Inside the job fair, a total of four consultation booths will be set up and operated according to four regional zones based on the locations of corporate taxi companies. The association will assign dedicated personnel to provide job seekers with company information and conduct employment consultations. Based on the consultation details, the hiring process between companies and job seekers will proceed afterward.

Baek Ho, Director of the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s Urban Transportation Office, said, “Since the taxi industry is facing significant difficulties in securing drivers due to COVID-19, we ask for the strong interest of job seekers who wish to work in corporate taxis,” and added, “We will also make great efforts to support the industry to contribute to smooth taxi use by citizens and to resolve the late-night taxi shortage.”

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