BUSAN — Busan City will launch research to analyze how extending the retirement age affects youth jobs and to close industrial safety gaps across its districts, part of an effort to craft cooperative employment solutions with labor, management, government and civic groups in response to a fast-changing labor market.
The city said on the 25th that it will hold the plenary session of the 2026 Busan Labor-Management-Government-Civic Council at city hall, with 20 participants including Mayor Jeon Jae-soo, the Busan regional headquarters of the Federation of Korean Trade Unions, the Busan Employers' Federation, the Busan Regional Employment and Labor Office, and experts and civic groups.
At the meeting, the city will share the progress of a study on analyzing the impact of retirement age extension and cooperative employment measures to expand youth jobs in the Busan region, aimed at responding to structural changes in the labor market such as population aging and a shrinking working-age population. The core goal is to analyze how extending the retirement age affects the employment security of older workers and what changes it brings to youth jobs, and to develop cooperative measures that prevent employment conflicts between generations.
Closing industrial safety gaps is also on the agenda. Through a study on surveying industrial safety conditions at the metropolitan and local levels and measures to close the gaps, the city plans to compare the status of industrial accidents and safety management conditions across districts, identify vulnerable factors by area, and build a systematic foundation for industrial safety management. The city plans to complete both studies by November and reflect them in policy.
The city will also expand its labor-management-government-civic cooperation projects. After carrying out 15 tasks across six areas last year, it is implementing 22 tasks across six areas this year. In particular, a promotional video produced by students from the Department of Public Relations and Advertising at Dongseo University will be unveiled at the meeting to introduce the council's projects from the perspective of young people.
The city also plans to review and sign a joint declaration at the meeting. The declaration will include specific action plans for each participant — creating safe workplaces, respecting the value of labor, and fostering shared growth between companies and workers.
"For a company to run for the long haul, the people working inside it must first be safe and properly respected," Jeon said. "We will actively support making safe workplaces and good jobs the foundation for sustainable growth in Busan, the maritime capital."
