Employee turnover, boom-and-bust cycles add to malaise
Choi Jun, head of the labor union at KTH, which operates Internet portal Paran, complained about the rapid turnover rate in the portal industry, and pointed to the cause. "In many cases, those with the longest service record get the lowest grade in personnel evaluations, even though their performance surpassed the company’s goals. The management seems to aim at a quick turnover of human resources." Lee, 36, who works at an Internet portal, sighs when he thinks of his future. He joined the online business in 1997 when the Internet "boom" hit, after working for a music CD maker. But according to him, "old people" cannot find a place in the online industry. Technologies develop and markets grow quickly, but people engaging in the industry are getting more insecure. It is same with the game industry. The businesses which cannot develop hit items cannot survive in the markets and so cannot their employees. The expected life span of online games is just six months. Workers in the Internet industry with a career longer than eight years have on average changed their jobs three or four times. Some found more stable work, but most had to join similar companies after being fired. Gwon, only identified by his surname, lost his job at a online gaming company. A month later, he is still looking for work. "I have no option but to get another job in the gaming field, as I lack experience in other areas," he said.A middle-ranking manager of NHN is seriously considering moving to another company. He is a founding member of the firm, and his salary is high. However, it is not certain how long he can work at NHN. "Employees of large companies like Samsung Electronics Co. face fierce competition to get promoted, but it’s even more intense in the Internet industry," he said. In the case of the Internet industry, many services are operated using standardized frameworks, so experience is not a factor in hiring, he added. In addition, many are hired by Internet companies to develop new services, and when those services fail, they are left without work. Because of these difficult employment conditions, workers in the Internet industry feel the need to make their voices heard, though it is difficult. KTH is the only company in the Internet industry that has a labor union. One major portal site’s employees established a union, as well, but it quickly collapsed, and another online company’s efforts to establish one were blocked by the management there. O Gwang-gyun of Daum Communications said that the average age of workers in his firm is just 29.8. He said that employees are anxious about the future of the industry and their livelihoods, as well.
