Ministry of Employment and Labor Extends Pohang and Seosan Proactive Employment Crisis Response Designation by Six Months

The designation period for Pohang in North Gyeongsang Province and Seosan in South Chungcheong Province as regions for proactive response to employment crises will be extended by six months, until November this year.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor announced on May 13 that the 4th Employment Policy Deliberation Committee was held to review and approve this decision.

The proactive employment crisis response region system designates areas where employment conditions are at risk of rapidly deteriorating. These regions are given preferential access to various employment support programs, such as employment retention subsidies, vocational competency development support projects, and living stability fund loans, with relaxed requirements and increased support levels.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor explained that this extension was decided in light of further deterioration in the local economy and employment conditions in Pohang and Seosan, which have already been suffering from employment instability due to sluggish steel and petrochemical industries, and have recently been affected by the aftermath of the Middle East war.

Minister of Employment and Labor Kim Younghoon stated, "We will actively support employment recovery to prevent the employment crisis from spreading throughout the region," adding, "We will closely monitor regional employment conditions and respond swiftly in the event of a crisis."