Hiring platforms vie to attract foreign jobseekers

Foreign students write their resumes during a job fair in Busan in this May 23 photo. Newsis

Recruitment platform operators in Korea have developed various services specifically designed for the increasing number of foreign jobseekers, as the prolonged economic slowdown has reduced job matching opportunities with Korean counterparts.

JobKorea signed a memorandum of understanding last week with HireDiversity, which supports administrative procedures needed for foreign students to stay in Korea.

Both companies agreed to work together to boost the hiring of foreign nationals by local firms by sharing HireDiversity’s capabilities in verifying visas and JobKorea’s information about the recruitment made by Korean companies.

Their partnership came a few weeks after JobKorea launched KLiK, which displays job postings in Korea in 28 different languages.

Employers using the service are asked to write down the visa status and level of Korean fluency they desire from applicants.

“We are planning to introduce a one-on-one consulting service for foreign jobseekers, while offering an AI-based talent matching service for hiring companies in the near future,” a JobKorea official said.

Wanted Lab opened a beta version of Wanted Global in May for foreign nationals who want white-collar jobs in Korea.

Wanted Global allows foreign jobseekers to browse job postings on a single platform. The service also enables users to filter job opportunities into three categories: positions requiring Korean, positions not requiring Korean, and positions where Korean proficiency is considered a plus.

“Based on a strong understanding of the global market and cultural diversity, foreign employees can bring creativity to companies,” a Wanted Lab official said.

Saramin is targeting corporate customers who have faced difficulties hiring foreign nationals.

Last month, the company partnered with K-Visa, a visa service startup, to help its corporate clients avoid issues related to the issuance of visas involving their foreign employees.

“The market for hiring of foreigners has been growing rapidly, given that the number of foreign nationals hired by Korean companies reached the record high of 923,000 in 2023,” a Saramin official said.

“We are trying to solve problems facing companies and foreign jobseekers.”