[Korea] Seoul City blueprint for attracting and retaining foreign talent

In Korea, the Seoul Metropolitan Government has released a blueprint to help make the city appealing to workers from overseas and create a "future Seoul that attracts talented global personnel and grows with foreign residents", Korea.net reports

On May 20, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon announced funding of KRW 250.6 billion to woo talented labour and firms and support them with settling in the city. The plan's two key aims are attracting high-calibre workers and creating an inclusive multicultural society.

To make Seoul an appealing destination for top global talent, the city reportedly pledged efforts ranging from support with attracting international companies to education and support finding jobs and launching startups.

A recruitment project - in cooperation with major domestic universities - will target 1,000 overseas workers in possession of a master's or PhD in natural sciences and engineering. The establishment of a ‘unicorn startup hub’ - an international support facility for businesses in which English is the spoken language - is also expected to attract startups with potential.

Foreign workers will also reportedly be hired for sectors suffering from staff shortages, such as healthcare, hotels and restaurants together with fields where the city currently excels, such as fashion, to revitalise the municipal economy. The introduction of such staff to sectors with severe labour shortages - including nursing and childcare - will be carefully conducted so as not to infringe on the jobs of nationals.

The second Seoul Foreign Resident Center will be opened in May next year in the city's northeast side as part of moves to create an inclusive multicultural society that embraces expats as fellow citizens. The first is located in the southwestern area. 

Family centres in 25 autonomous districts will reportedly run a real-time multilingual interpretation service, powered by AI. In addition, a support service for expats will help them safely find housing under the wolse (monthly rent) or jeonse (lump-sum deposit as rent) system. 

The ceiling for eligibility to receive pregnancy, childbirth and care services will be lowered to allow nationals and expats to equally receive benefits. From May 2024, a new monthly educational subsidy of KRW 400,000-KRW 600,000 for multicultural children in elementary, middle and high school will be provided to help offset the challenges of raising children.

"A city's competitiveness stems from dynamism, which comes from creative talent originating from diverse cultural backgrounds," Mayor Oh said. 

"To make Seoul one of the world's top five cities, we must attract foreign talent and companies more aggressively and get along with them to maximize their ideas, capital and human capacity to advance as an inclusive city."

Source: Korea.net

(Quote via original reporting)

In Korea, the Seoul Metropolitan Government has released a blueprint to help make the city appealing to workers from overseas and create a "future Seoul that attracts talented global personnel and grows with foreign residents", Korea.net reports

On May 20, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon announced funding of KRW 250.6 billion to woo talented labour and firms and support them with settling in the city. The plan's two key aims are attracting high-calibre workers and creating an inclusive multicultural society.

To make Seoul an appealing destination for top global talent, the city reportedly pledged efforts ranging from support with attracting international companies to education and support finding jobs and launching startups.

A recruitment project - in cooperation with major domestic universities - will target 1,000 overseas workers in possession of a master's or PhD in natural sciences and engineering. The establishment of a ‘unicorn startup hub’ - an international support facility for businesses in which English is the spoken language - is also expected to attract startups with potential.

Foreign workers will also reportedly be hired for sectors suffering from staff shortages, such as healthcare, hotels and restaurants together with fields where the city currently excels, such as fashion, to revitalise the municipal economy. The introduction of such staff to sectors with severe labour shortages - including nursing and childcare - will be carefully conducted so as not to infringe on the jobs of nationals.

The second Seoul Foreign Resident Center will be opened in May next year in the city's northeast side as part of moves to create an inclusive multicultural society that embraces expats as fellow citizens. The first is located in the southwestern area. 

Family centres in 25 autonomous districts will reportedly run a real-time multilingual interpretation service, powered by AI. In addition, a support service for expats will help them safely find housing under the wolse (monthly rent) or jeonse (lump-sum deposit as rent) system. 

The ceiling for eligibility to receive pregnancy, childbirth and care services will be lowered to allow nationals and expats to equally receive benefits. From May 2024, a new monthly educational subsidy of KRW 400,000-KRW 600,000 for multicultural children in elementary, middle and high school will be provided to help offset the challenges of raising children.

"A city's competitiveness stems from dynamism, which comes from creative talent originating from diverse cultural backgrounds," Mayor Oh said. 

"To make Seoul one of the world's top five cities, we must attract foreign talent and companies more aggressively and get along with them to maximize their ideas, capital and human capacity to advance as an inclusive city."

Source: Korea.net

(Quote via original reporting)