Lee Jae-myung Meets CEOs of Top 10 Groups, Urges "Bold Increase in Youth Hiring"

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, attended the 10 Major Group CEO Talk "Let's Take Off Our Ties and Talk" held on the 12th at the Korea Employers Federation in Mapo-gu, Seoul. Before the event started, he received a business proposal from Sohn Kyung-shik, the chairman of the Korea Employers Federation. Photo by the National Assembly Press Photographers Group

[Asia Economy Reporter Koo Chae-eun] Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party of Korea, said on the 12th during a meeting with executives of the top 10 domestic conglomerates, "I would like to ask you to consider boldly increasing youth employment."

During the 'Top 10 Group CEO Talk' event held at the Korea Employers Federation (KEF) building in Mapo-gu in the afternoon, Lee said in his greeting, "Please consider this as part of ESG (Environmental, Social Responsibility, and Corporate Governance) management in these difficult times."

Lee also expressed the government's strong commitment to investment. He stated, "Ultimately, it is due to the overall shortage of total opportunities," and added, "To overcome this issue, we need to structurally restore growth, and for that, the government's large-scale investment and attention are absolutely necessary."

While saying, "I do not think it is bad at all for individual companies to strive to maximize profits," Lee also said, "I believe that social enterprises and contributions can be one of the motivations within that, and from that perspective, I once again ask you to pay special attention to youth employment as part of ESG management."

He also expressed a theory of regulatory rationalization. Lee said, "It is not right to strengthen regulations unilaterally, but it is also not right to unilaterally ease regulations," adding, "If the regulation enhances rational competition and efficiency in the market, it is necessary, but if it is the opposite kind of regulation, it is right to boldly abolish or ease it." He explained, "To create new industries or achieve rapid industrial transformation, it is right to shift the regulatory direction to allow general matters except for problematic ones and to regulate issues afterward."

Lee also mentioned the Gwangju collapse accident. He said, "During the apartment construction process, something collapsed and someone was trapped, which worries many citizens. This is a conflicting issue," and added, "Safety issues are matters concerning the lives and integrity of all citizens, so I think strict measures are necessary, but it should not develop to the extent of unjustly suppressing corporate activities."

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