[Editorial] Lee urges youth hiring, but investment climate comes first

Feb. 5 (Asia Today) — President Lee Jae-myung on Tuesday called on major conglomerates to expand youth hiring, support startups and invest more actively in regional economies, hosting a business roundtable at the Blue House for the first time this year.

The meeting, themed “Expanding Youth Jobs and Regional Investment,” brought together the heads of 10 leading business groups. As youth unemployment continues to worsen, Lee’s appeal to domestic conglomerates, following a similar request to foreign-invested firms late last month, carries added weight.

“I appreciate that companies increased hiring and contributed to youth employment last year,” Lee said, urging them to further expand youth recruitment and strengthen education and employment programs through public-private cooperation.

He also emphasized the need for more active corporate support for startups. “The era of relying solely on traditional employment is passing,” Lee said. “We are aiming for a major transition toward a startup-centered nation.”

The president reiterated his administration’s commitment to “region-led growth,” outlining plans to create new development hubs through what he described as a “five-polar, three-special” framework and to provide weighted support for areas outside the Seoul metropolitan region.

Representing the business community, Korea Economic Association Chairman Ryu Jin pledged cooperation, saying the country’s 10 largest conglomerates plan to invest 270 trillion won ($200.5 billion) in regional areas over five years, while total planned business investment would reach 300 trillion won ($223.0 billion).

For such pledges to translate into real investment and jobs, however, the government must first improve the investment environment by easing regulations that constrain corporate activity.

Opposition voices have echoed that view. Jang Dong-hyuk, leader of the conservative People Power Party, said in remarks to National Assembly negotiators that “jobs are ultimately created by companies,” arguing that excessive regulations prevent firms from hiring more workers.

Jang pointed to legislation such as the Yellow Envelope Act, which strengthens protections for subcontracted workers, and the presumption of worker status system covering delivery drivers and freelancers, saying they have discouraged new investment and hiring.

The government is also being urged to consider proposals such as tax cuts for companies that maintain open recruitment of new graduates, a pledge previously floated by former presidential candidate Kim Moon-soo. At present, among the country’s top conglomerates, only Samsung Electronics conducts regular open recruitment.

The administration plans to announce comprehensive youth employment measures as early as the end of this month. Among the ideas under review is a temporary plan to hire 10,000 young people for a national tax delinquency management unit.

Public-sector jobs can help in the short term, but the most reliable way to create sustainable, high-quality employment remains removing obstacles to private-sector investment.

— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI

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Original Korean report: https://www.asiatoday.co.kr/kn/view.php?key=20260204010001700