Regular employees earned an average 4.318 million won ($3,115.3) a month in January to June, up 3.1 percent from a year earlier, based on Ministry of Employment and Labor survey data.
Bonuses and other special pay jumped 9.3 percent to a record 601,000 won, while base pay growth cooled to 2.2 percent.
Pay in the electronics and telecommunications sector, home to the country's chipmakers, soared 23.1 percent to 9.434 million won as special pay surged 66 percent.
The sector employs just 2.5 percent of regular workers, yet its bonuses alone added 42,000 won to the national average, or 32.4 percent of the total gain.
Ha Sang-woo, a economic researcher at the federation, said companies should share their gains with workers but size payouts with future investment in mind.
"Demands for pay raises beyond a company's ability to pay, benchmarked against compensation at other high-performing firms, should be guarded against," Ha said.
Semiconductors made up 47.5 percent of South Korea's exports in August, as chip shipments more than tripled from a year earlier to $46.65 billion, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources data showed.
The 10 largest exporters accounted for 55.3 percent of second-quarter exports, up 17 percentage points from a year earlier.
AJP Takeaways
- Chip bonuses accounted for 32.4 percent of the 131,000-won rise in South Korean regular workers' average monthly pay in January-June 2026, the Korea Enterprises Federation said on September 20, 2026.
- Monthly pay in the electronics and telecommunications sector rose 23.1 percent to 9.434 million won, while the sector employs only 2.5 percent of regular workers.
- Semiconductors made up 47.5 percent of South Korea's exports in August 2026, and the Bank of Korea has warned that concentrated gains limit consumption growth.
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