Technical Licenses Prove Key to Reemployment Success in South Korea (Image supported by ChatGPT)
SEOUL, June 30 (Korea Bizwire) — Electricians and elevator technicians topped the list of South Koreans who most successfully reentered the workforce through national technical certifications, according to data released Sunday by the Ministry of Employment and Labor and the Human Resources Development Service of Korea.
The analysis examined 610,000 individuals who earned a national technical qualification in 2023. Among them, 3.9% — or about 24,000 people — obtained their certifications with the explicit goal of reemployment following a job change or layoff.
Of those, 41.1% secured new employment by the end of July 2024, taking an average of 78.9 days to land a job.
Qualifications with the highest reemployment success rates included:
-
Electrician Engineer: 48.6%
-
Electrical Industrial Engineer: 60.8%
-
Elevator Technician: 58.2%
-
Level-2 Career Counselor: 44.6%
The shortest job search periods were associated with:
-
Energy Management Engineer: 42.2 days
-
Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Industrial Engineer: 43.7 days
-
Auto Maintenance Technician: 52.7 days
-
Level-2 Social Survey Analyst: 82.6 days
Construction, safety management, and electrical/electronics were the most common fields pursued for reemployment purposes.
Reemployment rates varied by age group, with young adults (ages 19–34) achieving the highest success rate at 44.3%. Older adults (55 and above) followed at 40.2%, while mid-career workers (ages 35–54) lagged at 37.9%.
The findings highlight which technical qualifications offer the most effective path back into the workforce amid a competitive labor market.
Ashley Song (ashley@koreabizwire.com)
