South Korea’s Woori Bank Co. that became fully privatized last year plans to double the number of new recruits this year, joining the government-led campaign to bolster hiring amid record-high youth joblessness.

The lender’s management and labor on Wednesday announced plans to jointly push forward five major tasks that aim to create more jobs in the financial sector. They include expanding new employment, offering all irregular workers regular positions, expanding outplacement system, improving overall working environment, and helping ease labor shortage of small- and mid-size companies.

Under the plan, Woori Bank will double the position for new recruits to 600 this year, up from 340 employees last year. The lender has already hired 111 new tellers involved in personal financial service this month and it plans to additionally hire 500 employees in other areas in the second half of this year.

The bank will also select 100 university students and send them to work as interns at its 270 overseas branches. The plan is to create more overseas jobs for young people in Korea as part of its global internship program. A notice for application will be announced this month and students will be placed at branches in October.

Among the five tasks also include improving employment quality by gradually providing irregular workers with full-time positions. In 2007 - for the first time in the banking industry - Woori Bank offered 3,076 irregular workers regular positions. Currently, 769 or 5 percent of total employees work on irregular terms such as part-time as of March and the lender plans to translate them into permanent positions.

Woori Bank will also expand its annual outplacement system that allows the company to support recently terminated employees to search for other jobs. The lender will increase special severance pay, which has been low compared to others in the industry, to the highest level among commercial lenders, and offer training programs not only to those subject to the peak wage system but all employees.

Woori Bank also plans to set up more start-up and outplacement system centers in different regions and offer diverse related programs. Currently, the lender runs the center at its headquarters in central Seoul.

The bank will expand new recruits in the second half of this year depending on the number of employees that apply to participate in its outplacement program.

By Park Joon-hyung

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]