Unemployment Problem

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President Moon Jae-in has called for stronger measures to tackle youth unemployment, calling the youth unemployment situation worse than ever before. He urged ministers to be more committed to the task and to listen to voices on the field.

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The liberal leader had harsh words from the start of a meeting that brought together various ministers to check on the nation's youth employment situation. He said the issue is near a national disaster but government ministries are not doing a good job addressing the matter.

[Soundbite] Pres. Moon Jae-in : "I wonder whether ministries share this commitment. It doesn't appear you have put top policy priority on addressing youth employment."

The president noted structural demographics where the number of youths in their late 20s entering the job market continue to grow through the year 2021, and warned that at this pace, young people will face even more devastating odds when seeking employment. Moon called for swift implementation of bolder, more specialized measures and policies, and used strong words to make his point.

[Soundbite] Pres. Moon Jae-in : "Emergency funds should be injected in the next 3-4 years to carry out special measures to create new jobs. Mid-to-long term policies should be pursued at the same time to facilitate youth employment."

He also stressed job creation in the public sector and efforts to induce participation from the private sector. Young representatives who also attended the meeting asked for inspections into employment services geared toward business startups and overseas jobs. They also wanted the government to improve communication with young people in its policy-making. President Moon requested all ministries come up with thorough measures by next month, stressing youth employment does not solely concern the labor ministry and economy-related agencies.