33 isolated, withdrawn and NEET youth take part in 'Neet Company Seodaemun Branch,' running through Oct. 19
Participants clock in five days a week online and offline, with one in-person day weekly — setting their own tasks to rebuild a daily rhythm
Young people who once found it overwhelming to step outside or meet others are now becoming "office workers" — and heading to work.
Rather than rushing into employment, the program asks participants to wake up at a set time, commute, meet colleagues and tackle self-assigned tasks one by one, gradually rebuilding the rhythm of daily life.
Seodaemun-gu will run the "Neet Company Seodaemun Branch" from Monday through Oct. 19, giving isolated, withdrawn and NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) youth a chance to recover daily routines at their own pace and reconnect with people and the community.
The "Neet Company" is a virtual workplace where participants commute and build relationships with colleagues as they would at a real company — but without any pressure to find employment or meet performance targets. Its core purpose is to create a buffer zone where young people can experience everyday life and social connection before entering society.
Thirty-three youth between the ages of 19 and 39 who live or spend most of their time in Seodaemun-gu are taking part.
As employees of the virtual company, participants verify their attendance five days a week through a mix of online and in-person check-ins, managing their own daily schedule. Once a week, they report in person to spaces within the district — including the Seodaemun Youth Startup Center — from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. to spend the day with fellow participants.
Each participant also decides for themselves what work to do. They set personal goals — self-care, career exploration, self-development or community activities — as their "assignments" and carry them out one at a time.
What the group does together inside the virtual company is also up to the participants. A standout feature is the "in-house club," where members propose activities based on their own interests, recruit colleagues and run the club themselves. Through 10 club sessions held between September and October, participants naturally practice meeting people and planning activities together.
Time outside the virtual office is built in as well. Monthly outdoor activities — one to two sessions per month — take participants across Seodaemun-gu, with options including animal-assisted therapy at a local center, forest healing on Baengnyeonsan, trekking along the Ansan trail, and an environmental and vegan tour of the neighborhood. The aim is to help participants build connections not only with their peers but also with the community where they live.
In October, as the roughly two-month program draws to a close, participants will organize a showcase of their own making.
Everything from deciding what to display to arranging the space and handling promotion will be managed by the participants themselves. Each person will turn the tasks and activities completed over the two months into tangible outputs to share with others — a form of work experience that lets them express their interests and talents without the premise of job-seeking.
Representatives from organizations that support isolated and withdrawn youth, as well as members of the public, will be invited to the showcase to hear about the participants' experiences and broaden community understanding of the issue.
Seodaemun-gu will also conduct pre- and post-program small-group interviews and surveys in partnership with the Korea NEET Life Association, a nonprofit. The findings will be used to assess what real changes participants experienced in their daily lives and relationships, and to inform future youth support policy.
The district held an orientation for participants at the Seodaemun Youth Startup Center on Monday, where the young people shared their interests and connected with the colleagues they will spend the next two months alongside.
"What isolated and withdrawn youth need is not pressure to rejoin society quickly, but time and space to restart daily life at their own pace and reconnect with people," Seodaemun-gu District Mayor Park Woon-ki said. "I hope these young people can find their place again and reconnect with others here in Seodaemun."
seouldream01@heraldcorp.com
