Hyundai Motor's Young Hiring Plunges 65% as SK hynix Expands Tenfold

[Financial News] New hiring at major South Korean conglomerates has fallen by more than 15% over the past two years. At the same time, the so-called "generation reversal" phenomenon, in which the share of younger and older workers within companies flips, is deepening.

According to Yonhap News Agency on the 18th, Leaders Index analyzed employment data from 2023 to 2025 for 132 of the top 500 companies that disclosed workforce figures by age group and new hires. Among the 113 companies that disclosed hiring totals, new recruitment fell 15.3% from 109,456 in 2023 to 92,680 last year. Over the same period, total employment also declined by 3,877, from 1,262,928 to 1,259,051.
By age group, employment of workers aged 30 and under fell by 36,909, or 13.8%, from 267,343 in 2023 to 230,434 last year. Their share of total employment also dropped from 21.2% to 18.3%. In contrast, employment of workers aged 50 and older rose by 10,715, or 4.8%, from 221,333 to 231,848. Their share increased from 17.5% to 18.4%, overtaking the younger group.
The same trend was seen in new hiring. The share of workers aged 30 and under fell from 56.4% in 2023 to 51.1% last year, while the share of those aged 50 and older jumped from 8.3% to 11.2%.
This generational gap was especially pronounced in domestic-demand industries such as distribution, food and beverage, construction, telecommunications and insurance. In the distribution sector, workers aged 50 and older accounted for 31.8% of employees last year, the highest among all industries. They were followed by food and beverage at 30.6% and construction and building materials at 29.7%. In telecommunications, the share of employees aged 50 and older, at 25.6%, was nearly four times that of workers aged 30 and under, at 6.6%.

Some companies saw a sharp decline in young hiring. HiteJinro's new hires aged 29 and under plunged from 82 in 2023 to just one last year. Hyundai Motor Company also cut young recruitment by 65.1% over the same period, from 16,551 to 5,782.
However, some growth industries such as semiconductors and biotech moved in the opposite direction. SK hynix's total new hires rose from 739 in 2023 to 3,201 last year, while young hires alone jumped more than tenfold, from 228 to 2,560. Samsung Biologics also increased young hiring from 205 to 484. The gains are seen as a result of stronger demand for labor amid a boom in the semiconductor and defense industries.
[email protected] Kim Su-yeon Reporter