"Employment to Increase by Over 200,000 Next Year" ... Semiconductor-Led Export Recovery Expected

Ministry of Employment and Labor, Job Policy Forum

It is projected that the number of employed persons next year will increase by more than 200,000 compared to this year. This is due to the recovery in exports centered on semiconductors.

On the 18th, the Ministry of Employment and Labor held a 'Job Policy Forum' at the Seoul Regional Employment and Labor Office to review next year's employment situation and discuss future employment policy directions.

The Job Policy Forum is a meeting body that discusses overall employment policies, including current employment policy issues, future labor market issue forecasts, job-related risks, and response directions. It has been operating since October this year and consists of 15 employment policy experts such as Kim Young-jung, President of the Korea Employment Information Service, Gil Hyun-jong, Director of the Korea Labor Institute, Kwon Soon-won, Professor at Sookmyung Women’s University, as well as the Director-General and Directors of the Employment Policy Bureau of the Ministry of Employment and Labor.

At the meeting, employment forecasts for next year from the Korea Development Institute (KDI), the Bank of Korea, and the Korea Labor Institute were reviewed, and employment policy directions were discussed in depth.

KDI, the Bank of Korea, and the Labor Institute forecast that the employment rate next year will rise by 0.3 percentage points from this year to 62.9%, and the number of employed persons will increase by more than 200,000 compared to this year. Each institution expects that while exports centered on semiconductors are projected to recover next year, in the case of manufacturing, there is a time lag for economic recovery to translate into employment recovery compared to the service sector. Considering the high-interest rate trend, uncertainties exist in terms of labor demand. However, from the labor supply side, with the continued expansion of economic participation by women and the elderly following this year, overall employment is expected to show a steady improvement, with the number of employed persons increasing by more than 200,000.

Lee Jung-sik, Minister of Employment and Labor, said, "To maintain the favorable employment trend, we will strengthen support for sectors with high job creation potential such as social services through inter-ministerial cooperation to expand private sector job creation capacity." He added, "Key tasks for next year include promoting labor market participation through tailored policies for youth, women, and the elderly, strengthening digital and new industry workforce development, activating flexible work arrangements such as staggered commuting hours, and reinforcing labor market mobility ladders to alleviate the dual structure."

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