Last Year’s Employment Increased Most in 7 Years... Hospitality and Food Service Employment Slump Continues

Employment Trends

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Son Seon-hee] The annual number of employed people increased at the largest rate in seven years last year. Despite the recent emergence of the Omicron variant, the base effect of the employment slump in 2020 and the impact of the non-face-to-face centered industrial restructuring were significant. However, the decline in employment in sectors severely affected by COVID-19, such as wholesale and retail trade, and accommodation and food services, continued.

According to the 'December 2021 and Annual Employment Trends' released by Statistics Korea on the 12th, the total number of employed people last year was 27,273,000, an increase of 369,000 compared to the previous year. This is the largest increase since 2014 (an increase of 598,000).

The improvement in the labor market last year is interpreted as largely due to the base effect from the huge employment shock in 2020, the first year of the COVID-19 outbreak. At that time, the annual number of employed people sharply decreased by 218,000, marking the largest decline in 22 years since the 1998 financial crisis (-1,276,000).

The monthly number of employed people in December last year increased by 773,000, marking the largest increase in 7 years and 10 months since February 2014. Gong Mi-sook, Director of the Social Statistics Bureau at Statistics Korea, said, "The base effect from 2020, changes in industrial structure such as non-face-to-face digital transformation, and favorable exports contributed to the continued recovery in employment."

However, the employment slump among vulnerable groups such as face-to-face service industries, which were directly hit by COVID-19, persisted. Looking at employment by industry, the wholesale and retail trade sector decreased by 150,000 last year, and the accommodation and food services sector also decreased by 47,000, continuing the downward trend from the previous year.

The number of self-employed people with employees also decreased by 65,000 last year, marking a decline for three consecutive years. However, on a monthly basis, it increased by 53,000 in December, turning to an upward trend for the first time in 3 years and 1 month. Statistics Korea explained that the number of self-employed people with employees increased mainly in health and social welfare, and accommodation and food services. By age group, employment among those aged 60 and over increased by 330,000, while the 'economic backbone' groups in their 30s and 40s decreased by 107,000 and 35,000 respectively.

Hong Nam-ki, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, said, "We will do our best to achieve a 'complete recovery' in both the quantity and quality aspects of employment as soon as possible."