총 36페이지

Eye of The Argus
Does Blind Hiring
Blind Discrimination?
ByByunHee-jin
EditorialConsultant
S
outh Korean President Moon Jae-in has announced the implementation of the “blind” hiring system to all
publicsectorsstartinginJuly,inanefforttopromoteequalityinemploymentprocedures.Healsoshowed
his hopes that the new regulation be expanded to private sectors as well. The Moon administration has
calledforsuchasysteminordertoeliminatehiringdiscriminationinasocietywhereconnectionsbasedonschool
and hometown may mean more than it should. In the Korean job market, it has been common for employers to
question applicants about possible discriminatory factors such as age, gender, physical information and even
maritalstatus.
The new system will serve as a device that guarantees fair opportunity for employment and breaks down
academic cliques. Unlike the past, the new resume will not require a photo, academic background or other
personalinformationunrelatedtothejob.Itwillfocusmoreonevaluatingcandidates’jobexperiencesandrelevant
qualifications.Themajorityseemstowelcomethenewregulationthatsolvesmanyexistingprejudices.
Thepolicy,however,givestheimpressionthatitwastoohastilymade,nomatterhowgooditsintentionis.The
government made a huge shift in policy that could possibly change Korean society’s paradigm in a single day
withoutanypublicdiscussion.Itwouldbedifficulttoformasocialconsensusiftheadministrationjusthurriesto
pursuejustificationswithoutanyspecificplansinhand.
The regulation is already facing harsh skepticisms. Many job seekers educated in prestigious universities have
angrilyaskedwhytheyshouldhidetheirschoolandhighGPAsincesuchfactorsreflecttheresultoftheirefforts.
Moreover,PresidentMoonhasdeclaredhewouldapplyquotasystems,whichwouldrequirethat30percentofnew
hiresbefromregionsoutsideofthecapitalareaand5percentmustbeyoungadults.Itiscontradictorythatboth
givechancestolocaltalentandyoungpeopleandadoptablindemploymentsystematthesametime.
Ambiguousrecruitmentstandardscancausegreaterinequalityratherthanovercomingacademicthresholds.Ifthe
criteriaoftheapplicationsarevague,thedifficultyofthewrittentestwillincreaseimmediatelyandtheinterview
screeningprocesswillbecomemorecomplicated.Itwillcausechaosforbothemployersandemployees,asfirms
havetospendmoreoftheirbudgetsonrecruitmentandjobseekerswillhavetoseekoutcountlessexperiencesfor
theirresumestobequalified.
Equalityandjusticearepreciousvalues.Nonetheless,ifthevalue’sefficiencyistoolow,weneedtospendgreater
timetothinkagain.Theanswertoalltheseproblemsistoimprovetheblindhiringsystem.Itshouldnotmerely
remain as a populist policy, but be a cornerstone of fair competition centered on ability and skills in Korean
society.
hjbandi@hufs.ac.kr
SEP 2017
25

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