Hyundai Motor, Kia Corp. headquarters in Seoul / Courtesy of Hyundai Motor Group

By Kim Hyun-bin

Hyundai Motor plans to hire a total of 700 new technical staff for two years starting in 2023, making it the first recruitment of technicians since 2013, according to industry officials, Friday.

The company's labor and management agreed during this year's wage negotiations to scale up its new recruitment of technical workers at domestic production plants, as thousands of experienced workers are set to retire each year.

Labor and management agreed to hire 400 people for technical positions in 2023 and 300 in 2024 to help improve the company's competitiveness in the automobile industry and enhance job security for employees.

Recruitment for these technical positions will be conducted through an open recruitment method, and detailed procedures will be implemented in accordance with the company's recruitment regulations.

This will be the first time since April 2013 that Hyundai Motor is hiring rookies for technical positions.

Before 2013, Hyundai Motor hired a total of 9,500 in-house subcontracted workers for full-time roles.

Hyundai Motor is expected to proceed with the new round of hiring in the first half of 2023. The union has been demanding new employees as more than 2,000 baby boomers, who make up the majority of union members, retire each year. This year, about 2,200 workers at Hyundai Motor and 770 at Kia are scheduled to leave the workforce ― among production workers.

The global auto industry has been hesitant to conduct large-scale recruitment drives for technicians as they are transitioning to electric cars. Electric vehicles (EVs) require 30 percent fewer parts than internal combustion engine automobiles, and the need for manufacturing personnel is greatly reduced also.