'God's workplace' in doubt... Which public corporation saw 30% of new hires resign?

Jeju Free International City Development Center (JDC)
"Proper Staffing Required After Cause Analysis"

Even public enterprises once called "divine workplaces" are experiencing a surge in resignations. Among the new hires at Jeju Free International City Development Center (JDC), a public enterprise under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, 30% have resigned.

JDC operates under the Special Act for the Creation of Free International Cities, supporting Jeju Island at the national level and promoting the development of Jeju Free International City. Since its opening in 2002, JDC has also managed the designated duty-free shops within Jeju Airport.

Jeju Airport JDC Duty-Free Shop
Photo by Yonhap News

According to the recent five-year new hire retention and resignation data submitted by JDC to the office of Kwon Young-se, a member of the People Power Party, 39 out of 127 new hires (30.7%) since 2018 have resigned.

The new hires are divided into general open recruitment (94 people) and Jeju regional talent recruitment (33 people), with 34 of the general open recruits (36.2%) confirmed to have resigned.

Most of the resignations occurred within three years of service. Seven resigned within six months, nine between six months and one year, eight between one and two years, ten between two and three years, and five after more than three years. Those who resigned before completing one year accounted for 41% of all resignations.

There were also three employees who worked less than a month, including one who resigned after only 12 days.

Most cited job change (32 people) as their reason for resignation. Others resigned for rest (4 people) or academic reasons (3 people).

By age group, those in their 20s accounted for more than half with 20 people, followed by 15 in their 30s, and 4 aged 40 and above. By rank, grade 6 employees were the most with 27 people, accounting for 69.2%.

JDC attributed the resignations of new hires to factors such as ▲the company's location in Jeju Island and ▲lower wages compared to other institutions under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

JDC's starting annual salary is 34.01 million KRW, ranking 19th out of 27 institutions under the Ministry in terms of starting salary.

The office of Kwon Young-se stated, "Frequent turnover among new hires causes many problems, including increased workload for remaining employees, higher recruitment costs, decreased productivity, and lowered morale," and pointed out, "JDC must conduct a thorough analysis of the causes, improve treatment, and implement measures to reduce employees' workload by hiring an appropriate number of staff so that the organization can regain vitality."

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