September Employment Increases by 309,000... Over 300,000 Growth for the First Time in Three Months (Update)

Manufacturing Employment Declines for 9 Consecutive Months
Youth Employment Also Decreases for 11 Months Straight

The number of employed people increased by 310,000 compared to a year ago last month, expanding the growth rate. However, the number of employed youth aged 15 to 29 decreased for the 11th consecutive month.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to the 'September 2023 Employment Trends' released by Statistics Korea on the 13th, the number of employed people last month was 28,698,000, an increase of 309,000 compared to the same period last year. The number of employed people has increased for 31 consecutive months since March 2021, when it rose by 314,000.

Last month's increase expanded compared to the previous month (August) at 268,000, rising to the 300,000 level for the first time in three months since June (333,000).

The monthly increase, which had slowed to 211,000 in July, also expanded for two consecutive months including last month.

However, the number of employed people in the manufacturing industry, which has the largest share of employment among all industries, decreased by 72,000 (-1.6%) last month, marking a decline for nine consecutive months since January (-35,000). The decrease in the number of employed people widened by 3,000 compared to the previous month (-69,000).

The number of employed youth aged 29 and under decreased by 89,000 compared to the same month last year, marking the 11th consecutive month of decline since November last year (-5,000). The decrease narrowed compared to the previous month (103,000).

On the other hand, the number of employed people in the construction industry, which had decreased for nine consecutive months from December last year to August this year, increased by 36,000, rebounding for the first time in 10 months since November last year (an increase of 11,000).