Hanwha Aerospace apologizes over controversial hiring guidelines

Hanwha Aerospace has issued an apology for its controversial hiring guidelines, which restricted experienced candidates based on age and educational background. The company has pledged to hold those responsible accountable and to revise its recruitment process to avoid similar occurrences. CEO Lee Boo-hwan expressed his regret on the company's website, stating that it was unacceptable to limit applicants' opportunities based on personal attributes that do not pertain to job performance.

Lee emphasized that guidelines specifying age ranges and universities directly violated Hanwha Aerospace's principles of open hiring and equal opportunity. The labor ministry initiated an inspection on September 16 following allegations of the company preparing and distributing such guidelines to human resources executives and hiring managers.

Lee acknowledged the matter as a serious failure on behalf of the company, as incorrect guidelines were disseminated to the wrong personnel.