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| Hwang In-kyeong, 21, stands in her favorite section of the school library, Wednesday. Hwang enrolled in the Creative Writing Department at the Seoul Institute of the Arts' Ansan campus in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, in March. / Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul |
By Lee Suh-yoon
Hwang In-kyeong, 21, still wakes up every morning thinking she has to go to work.
Hwang, a first-year creative writing major at an arts university in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, says her current life feels unreal ― and incomparably better than before.
Hwang started working at the age of 19 after graduating from a vocational high school with qualifications for administration and accounting tasks. Her first job was as an office worker in a trust company's auditing team. She later switched jobs to manage stores and merchandise for a firm selling mobile cartoon character goods. None of them suited her, or proved bearable enough to continue. Her last job was at a hagwon, which she recalls was "a lot of repetitive work on a chair."
"I live an autonomous life now," she says.
Hwang became a recipient of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's youth allowance program last year. The program provides unemployment benefits to lower- and middle-class residents aged 19 to 34 who lack full-time jobs. Around 5,000 applicants are chosen ― usually once a year ― and given a monthly allowance of 500,000 won ($418) for up to six months.
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| "It's like someone is supporting us, in case we trip and fall," Hwang said, referring to Seoul City's youth allowance program. / Korea Times photo by Sim Hyun-chul |
"The biggest mental obstacle I had when giving up a company job was losing a sense of belonging to society, not knowing how I would introduce myself to people without it," she said.
That worry proved to be unnecessary, thanks to community-building and support programs at the city's youth support center. She mingled with other participants at various talent building and therapy classes, ranging from poetry to African dance.
"I had time to think, I had a support group who believed in me. For the first time in my life, I felt like I could try something."
She now gives back to the community while attending school, interviewing and writing autobiographies for senior citizens through a city hall volunteer program.
According to the city government's recent survey of 2,002 youth allowance beneficiaries from 2017, around 6 percent are now active in the creative arts sector like Hwang. Another 39 percent are now employed and 2 percent have started their own businesses.
Compared to similar programs by other regional governments and the labor ministry, Seoul City's youth allowance scheme allows recipients to decide for themselves how the money is spent. The 500,000 won is directly sent to a special debit card held by the recipient, which can be swiped anywhere except casinos, bars or upscale hotels. Cash withdrawal is also possible. A youth unemployment benefit scheme by the central government only allows the money to be spent on specified test prep, academic institutions and books.
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| Sim Kyu-hyeop, 30, a youth community leader with the city's support center, poses in front of a March 1 Independence Movement mural at Donuimun Museum Village. / Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul |
Due to this autonomy, however, the program has been the subject of media scrutiny since its creation in 2016. Some called it a populist policy and a waste of taxpayer money. Others fretted it might provide a moral hazard and discourage participants from working as soon as possible.
Kim Young-kyung, the director of youth policy at Seoul Metropolitan Government, disagrees.
"Young people in their 20s and 30s look for jobs and social roles where they can exercise their autonomy," Kim says. "Instead of channeling funds directly to job training institutes and job providers like other youth employment support schemes, the youth allowance scheme allows young people to freely decide how the money is spent on them."
Sim Kyu-hyeop, another youth allowance recipient from last year, is partaking in the program again this year ― this time as one of the community leaders who reaches out to and plans projects with participants in the Gangnam-gu area.
"It's a meaningful challenge in my life. Meeting people from diverse backgrounds, learning from them and growing as a person in the process," Sim says.
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| "I know I won't be able to fit in a private Korean firm where I just follow orders from above. I want to actively do things with other young people," Sim says. / Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul |
Sim majored in law at university. After graduation and military service, he worked multiple part-time jobs seven days a week to pay for his living expenses, including rent, as he cannot stay with his parents living outside the capital.
"I've worked at convenience stores, as a waiter, temporary event staff, a billboard truck driver for CGV, and a leaflet distributor on the street. I even worked for a company that specialized in destroying documents for companies moving office. I kind of wanted to try everything," Sim says.
The 500,000 won he received partly covered his rent, utility and food bills. It also paid for the preparation to get him certified in career counseling. The financial support gave him time to connect with others and get job counseling, which he says gave him the psychological assurance to better navigate his future.
"After getting the youth allowance I could afford to contract my working schedule to the weekends, using most of my weekdays to meet friends and participate in various job support and community programs at the youth center," he says. Sim hopes his role as a club leader at the youth center this year will prepare and lead him to new opportunities where he can work with other young people.
Despite a GDP per capita nearing $30,000, youth unemployment is now an entrenched problem. Unlike their parents, who landed jobs straight out of school during the country's rapid development from the 1970s through the 90s, young Koreans are struggling. The youth unemployment figure reached an all-time high of 11.5 percent last month.
In a video message at the orientation event for newly chosen youth allowance beneficiaries May 14, Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon affirmed his support for the program.
"Seoul's youth allowance supports your autonomy and right to choose. Life is not about speed, it's the direction that matters," he said.
