47 employees hired in first 2026 recruitment round vow: 'Mutual growth is not a choice but survival'
Gwangju Global Motors announced Wednesday that it recently held a pledge ceremony at its in-house cooperation hall, where 47 new employees hired through the company's first open recruitment round of 2026 signed a commitment to uphold the labor-management mutual growth and development agreement.
The labor-management mutual growth and development agreement — a "social compact" signed in 2019 by the Gwangju city labor-management-civil-government council — stipulates that working conditions and the work environment will be negotiated through GGM's mutual growth council until cumulative production reaches 350,000 vehicles, and that annual wage increases will be pegged to the previous year's consumer price inflation rate.
The new employees converted to full-time status after completing a three-month internship. They were hired to bolster the workforce and ramp up output in response to strong domestic and overseas sales of the Casper.
The Casper has sustained its sales momentum by offering strong value for money even amid the triple burden of high inflation, high interest rates and high oil prices. Order-to-delivery times currently range from a minimum of 18 months to a maximum of 23 months. Demand has been shifting particularly toward electric vehicles (EVs) as a way to ease fuel costs, with oil price instability persisting due to the prolonged conflict in the Middle East. Industry observers expect demand for compact and mini EVs to continue for now.
GGM has been conducting regular recruitment rounds to meet the resulting need for additional workers.
The new hires beat a competitive ratio of 34 to 1 when they joined in March. Through the agreement, they pledged to "faithfully comply with the labor-management mutual growth and development agreement — the founding compact of GGM — as well as the supplementary resolution on the operation of the mutual growth council and the supplementary agreement on appropriate wages."
Since its founding, GGM has conducted 20 open recruitment rounds in total, drawing a cumulative 35,000 or so applicants and recording an average competitive ratio of 34.1 to 1. The heavy turnout of young people at each round reflects the serious youth unemployment situation in the Gwangju region.
In a congratulatory address, GGM CEO Yun Mong-hyeon said he "sincerely congratulates the talented individuals who broke through a difficult barrier amid tough employment conditions to become new members of our family," adding: "With a significant backlog of Casper orders from customers, let us produce as many vehicles as possible at the highest quality and build an even better company."
sij@heraldcorp.com
