EDITORIAL from The Korea Herald on Oct. 18)

Dwindling jobs

A decline in job creation can easily be anticipated at a time when the economy is slowing. Even so, it was nothing short of shocking that the year-on-year increase in the number of employed people fell to 112,000 in September, the lowest in three years and seven months.

Conventional wisdom has it that Korea needs to create 300,000 to 400,000 new jobs
each year if it is to avoid any serious employment problem. Given the recent
employment trend, however, these figures now appear to be unattainable.
Year-on-year job creation remained above 200,000 from August last year to
February this year. It has since fallen below -- a grave setback for President
Lee Myung-bak, who, as a presidential candidate, promised to create 600,000 new
jobs in each year of his presidency.
Despite the slowdown in job creation, the jobless rate was 3 percent in
September, the same as one year ago. Moreover, the jobless rate for the youth
dropped by 0.9 percentage point.
But it does not take a doctorate to understand this seemingly abnormal situation:
The number of people who stopped seeking employment increased by 350,000 from
August to September. By doing so, they joined the "economically inactive
population" -- a population that is not included among the unemployed.
A drop in job openings will undoubtedly discriminate against the youth. According
to one estimate, one in two graduating from high school or college will not be
able to land a job next year.
It may be practically impossible to reverse the declining employment trend and
create 300,000 new jobs a year anytime soon. Yet, much can be done by both
individuals and the government to alleviate the acute problem of unemployment.
Those in pursuit of employment may start with less rewarding jobs than they have
had in mind and look for better ones when the economy turns around. They should
not be as selective during hard times as they are now. According to a survey by a
job-placement agency, 86 percent of job applicants prefer remaining unemployed to
taking a job they do not want.
But it is the government that will have to take the initiative in the provision
of jobs. For instance, it may launch new projects to build roads, railways, ports
and other infrastructure and complete existing construction projects ahead of
schedule.
True, the government is trying hard to boost employment. In July, it announced
plans to subsidize employment by small and medium-sized companies and help
arrange overseas employment and volunteer work for young people. Two months
later, it promised to spend 1 trillion won during the next five years on
fostering young pioneers to create future engines of growth.
But these efforts are not enough. The government will have to do more. One urgent
job it needs to do is write a revision bill governing the protection of irregular
workers and pass it through the National Assembly.
Under the law, which took effect in July last year, employers will have to change
the status of irregular workers to that of regular workers, or dismiss them, when
the maximum two years of employment as irregular workers is up. But the law has
not had its intended effect of protecting such workers.
Instead, employers have an aversion to taking on irregular workers, as evidenced
by the decline in their number since the law went into force. Hence, a proposal
to extend the maximum period of employment as irregular workers to three years is
gaining momentum.
Most importantly, however, the government would do well to tailor fiscal,
monetary and tax policies to boost aggregate demand at a time when financial
turmoil is threatening to push the economy into recession. Nothing would be more
effective in creating jobs than the proposed sweeping change in policy.
(END)