Labor Ministry expands AI training for small firms, names 28 top joint training centers

The Ministry of Employment and Labor is overhauling its joint training system to help small and medium-sized enterprises adapt to the AI era. The ministry has selected 20 new AI-specialized joint training centers this year and plans to launch a full external expert quality-management system next year.

The ministry and the Human Resources Development Service of Korea announced Thursday that they will hold "Best of CHAMP+" at Oak Valley resort in Wonju, Gangwon Province, on Thursday and Friday. The two-day event will recognize 20 outstanding coordinators and 28 top-performing joint training institutions, share results, and discuss next year's operational direction as well as ways to advance cooperative training between large and small companies.

Best of CHAMP+ is an annual gathering that brings together about 700 officials from consortium joint training centers across the country to share best practices. The consortium program supports vocational training for small and medium-sized enterprises through large companies, universities and industry associations, and was launched in 2001. There are currently 340 joint training centers nationwide, with 141 industry associations and 88 universities among the participants. About 260,000 workers at small and medium-sized enterprises have taken part in center training programs.

The grand prize in the best-practices category went to Kwon Cheol-woo, a dedicated coordinator at KTDS, a KT Corp group IT service company. Kwon was recognized for running training programs that improved job skills at 423 partner companies.

He was particularly praised for visiting small and medium-sized enterprises unfamiliar with AI technology in person, conducting in-depth interviews, and rapidly developing and delivering training tailored to each workplace's needs.

In the outstanding institution category, Hyundai Rotem won the Ministry of Employment and Labor minister's award for large-small business cooperation training, Korea Polytechnics' Chuncheon campus won for region-specific industry training, and Korea Testing & Research Institute won for industrial transition training. The Human Resources Development Service of Korea president's award went to HD Hyundai Samho and 24 other institutions.

The ministry said it will support more than 40,000 small and medium-sized enterprises in receiving training suited to industry changes through the 340 joint training centers nationwide. In addition to the 20 newly selected AI-specialized centers, the existing training framework is also being restructured to keep pace with the spread of AI and broader industrial transformation.

A new quality-management system will also be introduced. External experts will participate in plan reviews, consulting and performance evaluations, while subject-matter specialists and human resources development professionals will visit centers directly to provide tailored consulting. The system will undergo a pilot run in the second half of this year before a full rollout next year.

Pyeon Do-in, director general of the ministry's Vocational Competency Development Bureau, said he hopes best practices from joint training centers will be shared and spread widely across workplaces, and that cooperative training for large and small business cooperation will advance further as a result. "We will listen broadly to voices from the field and support joint training centers in contributing to national industrial development and the creation of quality jobs," he said.