South Korea’s business titan, Samsung, and its peers are stepping up recruitment of fresh graduates, wagering that a new generation of workers can drive growth amid restructuring, trade headwinds and the advance of artificial intelligence.
Samsung Group said Thursday it will take on 60,000 new hires over the next five years – about 12,000 annually, or 20% more than its average in the recent three years.
The new hires, mostly fresh graduates, will be spread across 19 affiliates, including Samsung Electronics, Samsung Display, Samsung SDI and Samsung Biologics.
Samsung said the plan is aimed at developing future businesses – semiconductor parts, bio and AI – while also creating jobs for young Koreans.
Other major chaebol are also bolstering their ranks.
SK Group, the country’s second-largest conglomerate, expects to recruit 4,000 people in the second half of this year. Hyundai Motor Group will hire 7,200 this year and expand to 10,000 in 2026.
LG Group will add 10,000 employees over three years, while POSCO plans to recruit 15,000 over five years.
Hanwha Group said it will bring in 3,500 more workers in the second half, after 2,100 in the first.
The hiring spree follows President Lee Jae Myung’s call earlier this week for big business groups to expand opportunities for young job seekers.
Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong pledged in June during his meeting with the president to carry out domestic investment and job creation “without delay or change,” despite growing economic headwinds.
RESTRUCTURING AND AI TRANSITION
The entry-level recruitment drive comes at a time when Korean companies are trimming costs and reshaping their workforces amid the rapid advance of AI.
On Wednesday, LG Electronics Inc. broadened its voluntary retirement program, which was initially limited to its money-losing TV unit, to cover all departments, citing eroding profitability.
The home appliance giant said it would reorganize its workforce by phasing out older and underperforming staff while channeling resources into areas such as AI and business-to-business services.
The business reshuffle is also taking place against a broader government-led restructuring push in the country’s steel and petrochemicals industries that have been steadily losing ground to Chinese competitors.
Seoul has made clear it wants capital and talent redeployed toward higher-value businesses and its ambition to become a global leader in AI and other next-generation technologies.
BALANCING CUTS WITH HIRING
Analysts say the dual track of layoffs and entry-level hiring underscores how Korean conglomerates are trying to stay competitive in a shifting global economy.
“While we must deal with immediate challenges, we also need to lay the foundations for growth over the next 20 and 30 years,” Samsung’s Lee said earlier this year.
Samsung’s domestic workforce has grown 23% since 2019, reaching nearly 129,000 as of June.
The expansion underscores how Korea’s largest conglomerate continues to bet on young talent to sustain growth, even as rivals cut back and AI reshapes the workplace.
By Chae-Yeon Kim, Jin-Won Kim and Eui-Myung Park
why29@hankyung.com
Sookyung Seo edited this article.
