Hyundai Motor Group announced large-scale investment and recruitment plans to invest 68 trillion won and hire 80,000 people in Korea over three years. It was unusual that Hyundai announced a mid-to long-term investment and employment plan.

Hyundai announced on March 7 that it will hire 80,000 new employees and invest 68 trillion won in research and development by 2026 in areas such as promoting new businesses and expanding its business. The scale of Hyundai’s recruitment exceeds that of Samsung Electronics which plans to hire 80,000 new employees over five years from 2022. Taking into account the 118,000 additional jobs in the domestic parts industry due to the increase in employment in the automotive sector, Hyundai expects to create more than 198,000 jobs.

In detail, Hyundai will hire 44,000 new employees to promote new businesses, such as electrification and software-driven vehicles (SDVs). Another 23,000 will be hired to strengthen competitiveness and expand its business, including new vehicle and parts development, quality and safety management. Some 13,000 skilled retirees will be rehired for a period of time under the Retiree Continuation Employment System according to the labor-management agreement.

The average annual investment in Korea over the past three years was about 22.7 trillion won, up 30 percent from last year (17.5 trillion won). Of the total investment of 68 trillion won, 31.1 trillion won will be invested in research and development related to the future car business, including electrification, SDVs, and internalization of battery technology.

The company will also spend 35.3 trillion won on other investments, such as the establishment of a new electric vehicle factory and the Global Business Center (GBC) in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. It plans to start production at the Kia EV plant in Gwangmyeong this year, followed by the plant in Hwaseong next year and in Ulsan in 2026.

In the case of the GBC project, Hyundai said that if the Seoul Metropolitan Government approves the design changes in the second half of next year, the project alone will require 4.6 trillion won in investment and create 9,200 jobs by 2026. The automaker originally planned to build the GBC with five buildings, including a 105-story (569 meters) skyscraper, but submitted a proposal to the Seoul Metropolitan Government early last month that changed the design to split the skyscraper into two 55-story (242 meters) towers.

Hyundai’s announcement of large-scale recruitment and investment plans is a move to increase investment in new businesses after the company posted record profits last year. It aims to solidify its business foundation and secure growth engines to become a "first mover" in the global automotive industry. Last year, Hyundai and its affiliate Kia’s combined operating profit exceeded 26 trillion won, the highest ever.

Hyundai said the investment is part of its shareholder return policy to increase corporate value. "With record-breaking earnings last year and the stock prices of Hyundai’s major group companies near all-time highs, shareholders and various stakeholders demanded us to present a concrete vision and blueprint for the future," Hyundai said. "In response, we expect to strengthen communication and help raise the value of undervalued major group companies by conveying the group's comprehensive direction and willingness to grow at the end of the group's shareholders' meeting.”