Gwangju City to Move Up Personnel Appointments for First Half of Next Year

Promotion Approved for 159 Officials, Including 2 at Level 3 and 10 at Level 4
Stabilizing Organization and Fostering a Productive Atmosphere Amid 'Emergency Situation'

Gwangju City Hall exterior view.

Gwangju City announced on the 17th that it will move up its regular personnel appointments for the first half of next year by 20 days. This decision aims to stabilize the organization during the current emergency political climate and to quickly establish a productive work atmosphere for the new year.

On this day, Gwangju City convened a personnel committee and approved the promotions of 159 employees?2 at grade 3, 10 at grade 4, and 28 at grade 5?filling vacancies created by retirement preparation training and honorary retirements.

This round of promotions prioritizes ‘citizen happiness’ as the top value, aims to solidify the administration in the latter half of the 8th popularly elected term, and focuses on appointing talented individuals who will drive ‘Opportunity City Gwangju’ forward.

Based on organizational stability, the city actively identified individuals who have delivered results in areas such as ▲Gwangju’s core values ▲citizen safety ▲improving citizen convenience. For department heads and above, responsible leaders who can drive Gwangju’s future industries and enhance citizens’ quality of life through vibrant urban spaces were appointed. For employees at grade 6 and below, while respecting the order of promotion candidate lists, the city boldly selected those who achieved outstanding results in tasks directly impacting citizens.

For the first half of the year, two individuals were promoted to grade 3: Choi Taejo (Director of Future Automotive Industry) and Shin Jaeuk (Director of Spatial Innovation), who will be promoted to Deputy Director General.

Director Choi Taejo is recognized as a manager with strong trust within the organization and rational work execution skills, credited for laying the foundation for the advancement of Gwangju’s automotive industry through the establishment of a specialized cluster for future automotive parts and materials and the export of Casper electric vehicles.

Director Shin Jaeuk, who has served as Director of Waterfront Spaces and Director of Urban Planning, is known as a practical manager who cares for and leads staff effectively. He has been highly praised for his outstanding planning and execution in urban revitalization, redevelopment, and smart city development projects, contributing significantly to citizen-centered urban development.

In addition, 10 individuals who achieved visible results in enhancing citizen convenience and quality of life in key areas aligned with the citizen happiness vision of the 8th popularly elected administration were promoted to Director General.

Kim Sangyul, Director of Personnel Policy, stated, “We hope this personnel appointment will strengthen organizational expertise and become an innovative leap toward realizing citizen happiness. The promoted employees will embody Gwangju’s values and spirit in their respective roles and contribute to strengthening citizen-centered administration.”

Meanwhile, Gwangju City plans to complete the appointments for grade 4 and above executives on January 1 and for grade 5 and below on January 2, moving up the regular personnel appointments by about 20 days compared to previous years.

Regarding this, a Gwangju City official explained, “This is a bold innovation from the previous step-by-step personnel transfer method. Amid the current unstable political climate, it demonstrates our commitment to minimizing organizational confusion from promotions and transfers, and to providing stable, citizen-centered administrative services through swift and balanced organizational restructuring.”

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