November Employment Increased by 277,000... Growth Rate Slows After 4 Months (Update)

The number of employed people in November increased by 277,000 compared to the same period last year. However, the rate of employment growth slowed for the first time in four months since August.

During the same period, the number of unemployed people increased by 11,000, marking a shift to an upward trend for the first time in 32 months since March 2021.

According to the 'November 2023 Employment Trends' released by Statistics Korea on the 13th, the number of employed people last month was 28,698,000, an increase of 277,000 compared to the same month last year.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The number of employed people showed a continuous increase for 33 consecutive months since March 2021, but the growth rate slowed for the first time in four months. The monthly employment increase was in the 210,000 range in July, followed by △268,000 in August △309,000 in September △346,000 in October.

Seo Woon-ju, Director of the Social Statistics Bureau at Statistics Korea, explained, "The accommodation and food service industry had been continuously increasing due to the recovery of daily life after the COVID-19 pandemic," adding, "As the base effect of post-COVID daily life recovery fades, the growth rate has slowed."

By age group, employment increased by 291,000 among those aged 60 and over, 80,000 in their 30s, and 36,000 in their 50s. Conversely, employment decreased by 62,000 in their 40s and 44,000 in their 20s.

The number of employed people aged 20 and under and those in their 40s has been declining for 13 months and 17 months, respectively.

By industry, employment increased in professional, scientific, and technical services (89,000, 6.8%), health and social welfare services (85,000, 3.0%), and information and communication (54,000, 5.4%). On the other hand, employment decreased in education services (-57,000, -3.0%) and real estate (-30,000, -5.4%).

Job seekers participating in the '2023 Gangnam-gu Job Fair' held at the Gangnam Employment and Startup Hub Center in Seoul on the 13th are looking at the recruitment bulletin board. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

The employment rate for those aged 15 and over was 63.1%, up 0.4 percentage points from a year earlier. The employment rate for those aged 15-64, the OECD comparison standard, was 69.6%, up 0.6 percentage points from the same month last year.

The employment rate for youth (ages 15-29) was 46.3%, an increase of 0.2 percentage points compared to the same month last year.

The unemployment rate remained at 2.3%, the same as the previous year, but the number of unemployed people was 677,000, an increase of 11,000 compared to the same month last year. The number of unemployed people shifted to an upward trend for the first time in 32 months since March 2021.

The economically inactive population decreased by 130,000 from a year earlier, recording 16,101,000.