Health Care and Social Welfare Services, Number of Self-Employed with Employees Increases by 7,000
The Myeongdong street, known as a representative commercial district in Seoul, has lost its vitality due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic. The number of tourists decreased further as the heatwave coincided. The vacancy rate in the second quarter recorded approximately 43%. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@
[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Sehee] Last month, the number of self-employed individuals with employees decreased by 246,000 compared to before the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, owners in their 40s and 50s accounted for most of the decline.
According to Statistics Korea on the 15th, the number of self-employed people with employees in July was 1,274,000, down 246,000 from 1,520,000 in July 2019, before the outbreak of COVID-19.
As a result, the number of self-employed people with employees fell to the lowest level in 31 years since 1990 (1,195,000) as of July, and their share of total employed persons also recorded an all-time low of 4.6% for July.
By age group, among self-employed people with employees, those in their 40s decreased by 113,000, showing the largest decline. Those in their 50s followed with a decrease of 83,000.
In total, 196,000 self-employed individuals with employees disappeared from the 40s and 50s age groups alone. Additionally, those in their 30s decreased by 32,000, and those aged 60 and over decreased by 34,000. The number of people in their 20s increased by 15,000.
For self-employed individuals working alone without employees, the number increased by 135,000 compared to July 2019. However, among those without employees, the 40s and 50s age groups decreased by 69,000.
By industry, the manufacturing sector showed the largest decrease in self-employed people with employees, down by 51,000.
The wholesale and retail trade sector decreased by 47,000, which includes local supermarkets, optical shops, clothing stores, and other specialty retail stores.
Additionally, the accommodation and food service industry, which was hit hard by social distancing measures, saw a decrease of 36,000 self-employed people with employees, followed by construction (-32,000) and real estate (-18,000). The only industry where the number of self-employed people with employees increased compared to 2019 was health care and social welfare services (7,000).
The total number of self-employed people with employees last month was 1,274,000, the lowest in 30 years and 3 months since April 1991 (1,251,000).
Last month, the number of self-employed people with employees decreased by 71,000 compared to July last year, continuing a decline for 32 consecutive months since December 2018 (a decrease of 26,000). This is the longest continuous decline since statistics began in July 1982.
A Statistics Korea official explained, "While the impact of social distancing continues, changes in the industrial structure favoring non-face-to-face purchases over face-to-face purchases have also affected the decrease in self-employed people with employees, especially in wholesale and retail trade and manufacturing."
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