The Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) said on the 13th that it will designate Pohang in North Gyeongsang and Seosan in South Chungcheong as preemptive employment crisis response areas through November this year. Once designated as preemptive employment crisis response areas, they receive preferential treatment for support requirements and levels such as employment retention subsidies, vocational competency development support programs, and livelihood stabilization loans.
The ministry held the 4th Employment Policy Council meeting the same day and extended by six months the designation period for Pohang and Seosan as preemptive employment crisis response areas, which had been set to end this month. Pohang's main industry is steel and Seosan's is petrochemicals, and the measure follows a slump in those industries due to the Middle East war. The number of insured under employment insurance in Pohang's steel industry and Seosan's petrochemical industry has fallen for three straight months from a year earlier.
Minister Kim Young-hoon said, "We will provide practical support to restore employment so that the overall regional employment crisis does not spread," adding, "We will closely monitor employment conditions and respond swiftly if a crisis occurs."