In July, the employment rate reached a record high of 70.3%, but the overall increase in employment was driven by those aged 60 and older. Meanwhile, the number of employed youth has decreased for 45 consecutive months, with the youth unemployment rate reaching its highest level in 5 years and 6 months.
According to the national data agency's employment trends report released on August 12, the number of employed individuals in July was 29.136 million, an increase of 108,000 compared to the same month last year. This marks the second consecutive month of growth following an increase of 63,000 in June.
The employment rate for those aged 15 to 64, as defined by the OECD, was 70.3%, up 0.1 percentage points from a year ago. This is the highest level recorded for July since statistics began in 1989.
Despite the overall increase in employment and improvement in the employment rate, indicators for the youth demographic remain weak. The employment rate for those aged 15 to 29 was 44.2%, down 1.6 percentage points from July of last year, marking 27 consecutive months of decline. The number of employed youth decreased by 226,000, the largest drop among all age groups.
Additionally, employment among those in their 40s also fell by 31,000. In contrast, employment for those aged 60 and older increased by 231,000, driving the overall increase in employment numbers.
Bin Hyun-jun, head of the social statistics division at the data agency, stated, "The current employment situation is not favorable compared to the past, which is reflected in the decrease in employment among the 15 to 64 age group according to OECD standards. The absolute number of employed individuals is increasing significantly among those aged 65 and older."
The unemployment rate was recorded at 2.6%, up 0.2 percentage points from a year ago. Among youth, the unemployment rate rose to 6.8%, an increase of 1.3 percentage points over the past year. Bin noted, "The youth unemployment rate has risen the most since July 2022, when it was also 6.8%."
By industry, significant employment growth was observed in the health and social welfare services sector (173,000 jobs, 5.3%), the arts, sports, and leisure services sector (48,000 jobs, 8.4%), and public administration, defense, and social security administration (46,000 jobs, 3.5%).
Conversely, agriculture, forestry, and fishing saw a decline of 80,000 jobs (-5.4%), manufacturing lost 68,000 jobs (-1.6%), and construction experienced a drop of 57,000 jobs (-3.0%), continuing a 27-month streak of losses.
Among wage workers, the number of permanent employees increased by 71,000 (0.4%), while temporary workers decreased by 40,000 (-0.8%) and daily workers fell by 41,000 (-4.8%). Among non-wage workers, self-employed individuals with employees rose by 75,000 (5.3%), and those without employees increased by 75,000 (1.8%). However, unpaid family workers decreased by 32,000 (-3.6%).
The government plans to improve employment conditions, focusing on vulnerable groups such as youth and those in the construction and manufacturing sectors.
A ministry of economy and finance official stated, "We will soon announce a 'Youth Job Recovery Plan' prepared in collaboration with relevant departments to improve youth employment conditions. For sectors experiencing employment difficulties, such as manufacturing and construction, we will identify response tasks to boost industrial vitality and expand job creation and entrepreneurship, which will be presented at the economic ministers' meeting."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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