YONGIN — Yongin Senior Club, which runs the city's programs supporting social participation by older adults, has received a Prime Minister's Commendation for its work on elderly policy, the city of Yongin said on the 16th.
Yongin Senior Club is a dedicated elderly employment agency that the city has contracted out to Yeonkkot Village, a social welfare corporation. Since opening in 2010, it has run 62 programs and provided jobs to 12,340 older adults.
The club was also named an outstanding institution in July in an evaluation of agencies carrying out elderly employment and social activity support programs, conducted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare. The city attributed the result to the club's support for older adults' economic activity, its expansion of their social participation and its capacity to run education programs.
This year, Yongin Senior Club is operating 1,386 jobs for older adults, including positions at coffee shops and car washes. It created the country's first franchise system for laundromats staffed by older workers and opened a job site inside E-Mart, a major retailer, broadening its market-based employment model.
Its food manufacturing operation has obtained Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) certification. Its beverage retail business, staffed by older adults, has been certified as a social enterprise, strengthening its professional standing.
The club also drew high marks for creating a safe working environment. In 2024, it received a certificate as an outstanding workplace for risk assessment from the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency.
It has also worked to prevent accidents through a field-focused safety management system, manuals tailored to each worksite and regular safety training.
"This commendation is an achievement made together with the older adults who take part and with related organizations," a city official said. "We will continue to create safe and varied jobs so that the experience and capabilities of older adults translate into value for the community."