Labor ministry honors 17 mid-career job winners

The labor ministry and the Korea Labor-Management Development Foundation awarded five individuals and 12 companies at a ceremony Wednesday marking the 21st Mid-Career Employment Emphasis Week, held this year under the theme "Connecting Regions, Growing Mid-Career Workers." The week runs from Sept. 28 to Oct. 2.

Minister Kim Young-hoon presented the awards. "Mid-career employment is no longer a choice but a necessity, and we must find a path where local communities and mid-career workers grow together," Kim said.

Among the individual winners was Choi Myung-chul, 48, of Sunlin Co., who ran a restaurant for about a decade before the COVID-19 pandemic forced him to close it. He joined a mid-career career development counseling program and completed a four-day semiconductor job training course and a four-week specialized semiconductor program at a Korea Polytechnic University campus. He now works as a semiconductor engineer.

Other honorees included Shin Jung-sook, 54, who held a job in the financial sector before losing her career path during the IMF financial crisis, then tried roles as a librarian and barista before winning a job in office accounting through a mid-career work experience program.

Kim also said the ministry plans to support AI-based career design, incentives and counseling services, while foundation Secretary-General Park Jong-pil said career development support should be strengthened and corporate consulting expanded to reach more small and mid-sized businesses.