(Unofficial Translation)

Fellow Koreans, residents of Jeollabuk-do Province and Gunsan City, 

I wholeheartedly congratulate you on the completion of Edison Motors’ plant, the first factory for Gunsan-type jobs. This invaluable result has been made possible by the local chapters of both national umbrella unions jointly laying out a mutually beneficial agreement as well as Gunsan citizens participating in the initiative.

An employee stock ownership plan and a program enabling employees to join board meetings as observers have helped establish cooperative relations between labor and management. With “value chain agreements,” businesses have made promises for mutual benefits in such cooperative projects as R&D, marketing and logistics.

This fruitful result has come from creating an opportunity to take off despite the difficult situation where jobs are dwindling. It is truly an invaluable achievement. 

The completion of Edison Motors’ factory is also a vibrant whistle that heralds the era of electric vehicles in Gunsan.

Going forward, a total of 517.1 billion won will be invested in Gunsan and the Saemangeum area. Approximately 1,700 jobs will be created, and 110,000 electric cars will be produced annually. 

The Edison Motors plant will serve as a stepping stone for the growth of outstanding young people in the region, and local tech-laden mid-market companies and business ventures will create a just industrial ecosystem based on local infrastructure. Electric vehicles, along with hydrogen-fueled cars, are the core of the future car industry. The eco-friendly future car industrial ecosystem to be created in Gunsan and the Saemangeum area will be a new growth engine for the Korean economy. 

Fellow Koreans, Jeollabuk-do residents, Gunsan citizens, 

Gunsan-type jobs and other mutually beneficial job programs are making Korea’s vision – balanced national development – a reality in eight regions across the country, including Gwangju, Miryang, Hoengseong, Busan, Daegu, Gumi and Sinan.

The Government will build a close-knit employment safety net through mutually beneficial jobs. As the Human New Deal – an important pillar of the Korean New Deal 2.0 – materializes, every part of the country will be transformed into a better place to live in.

The Edison Motors plant has proven that we can succeed when we work together. The Government will fully support local governments’ efforts and provide a worker- and business-friendly environment. Through regulatory reforms and customized regional support packages such as R&D assistance, we will help mutually beneficial job programs become sustainable.

Gunsan has suffered several crises since the opening of its port, but it has always turned them into new opportunities. Gunsan-type jobs will also become a model of success for mutually beneficial jobs and the production of eco-friendly electric vehicles. Let us spread hope across the country through the success of Edison Motors’ plant. The Government will always stand with you.

Thank you.