Kindergarteners pose with their teachers at a POSCO day care center in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, July 25. Courtesy of POSCO

POSCO is running day care centers not only for its employees' young children but also for those of its partner companies.

The world's sixth-largest steelmaker had operated several facilities solely for its employees' kids. In a bid to help tackle Korea's low birthrate problem, POSCO signed a memorandum of understanding with the Korea Workers' Compensation & Welfare Service to expand the service to children of its partner firms in April 2019.

In June 2020, it built and has since operated two day care centers — one near POSCO's headquarters in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, and another in Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province.

Not only employees of the steelmaker's 19 affiliated companies but also those of 41 partner firms put their kids at the day care center in Pohang. In Gwangyang, parents of 19 affiliated and 88 partner companies are beneficiaries of the service.

Figure suggests that about half of the children are of employees of the steelmaker's partner companies.

Located near the steelmaker's headquarters in Pohang, the POSCO Dongchon Child Care Center offers a two-story indoor garden where kids can cultivate plants and see a clear blue sky through its glass ceiling. It also features a library and running tracks. It has also operated an English program since 2022.

The POSCO Geumdang Child Care Center is located inside the POSCO Gwangyang Steelworks residential area. It offers a large playground where seasonal events are held for kids. Like its sister care center in Pohang, it also offers various educational programs to help in developing children's potential.

Besides the centers above, the steelmaker renovated its existing child care center at the POSCO Center in Gangnam, Seoul, where not only POSCO employees but also partner firm employees can leave their children during business hours.

POSCO has also operated various career programs, including remote work at home, to help prevent its workers from experiencing career interruptions due to having and raising children since July 2020.

In a bid to support the children of its workers as well as those of partner firm employees, the steelmaker established a scholarship program to financially support their kids' education from preschool to college under a joint agreement with its unionized workers as well as partner companies in Pohang and Gwangyang.

"It is important to [keep our] workers [happy] for our company's success," a POSCO official said in a press release. "We hope POSCO's effort suggests a role model for a win-win relationship with partner firms and contribution to easing Korea's low birthrate problem."