2% of All Employed Work Side Jobs... "Average Weekly Work Hours 55"

Korean Labor Panel 'Status and Characteristics of Multiple Job Holders' Report
"N-job Workers Earn 3,000 Won Less Per Hour"

Two percent of all employed workers are 'N-jobbers' holding two or more jobs, and their average working hours approach 55 hours per week.

According to the report "Status and Characteristics of Multiple Job Holders" released by the Korea Labor Institute on the 7th, analysis of the Korea Labor Panel shows that the proportion of employed persons holding two or more jobs simultaneously was 1.9% in 2018, 2.1% in 2019, and 2.0% from 2020 to 2022, maintaining a level of around 2.0% over the past five years.

By gender, the proportion of women among multiple job holders increased from 40.7% to 46.1% over five years. By age group, the share of those aged 60 and over rose from 41.9% to 49.6%. As of 2022, nearly half of those with two or more jobs were aged 60 or older.

By educational background, high school graduates (35.9%) were the largest group, and the proportion of household heads was 68.5%.

Regarding employment status of jobs, the largest share of primary jobs was self-employed persons at 42.8%, followed by regular employees (21.1%) and temporary workers (19.6%). For the second job, self-employment (46.5%) was also the most common, followed by temporary work (21.1%).

The report analyzed that second jobs tend to be concentrated in occupations and industries that do not require professional skills.

The average monthly income from the main job of multiple job holders (in real terms) was 1,861,000 KRW in 2022, which was only 68% of that of single job holders (2,737,000 KRW). Working hours were also about 10 hours shorter, with an average of 30.1 hours per week compared to 40.2 hours for single job holders.

However, combined working hours from main and secondary jobs averaged 54.6 hours per week, more than 14 hours longer than workers without side jobs. This exceeds the maximum weekly working hours of 52 hours stipulated by the Labor Standards Act.

While longer working hours increased income, the extent was limited. The combined average monthly income of multiple job holders was 2,947,000 KRW, about 210,000 KRW more than single job holders. However, when converted to hourly income, multiple job holders earned 13,000 KRW per hour, less than the 16,000 KRW per hour earned by single job holders.

Multiple job holders also had significantly lower enrollment rates in the National Pension and Employment Insurance compared to single job holders.

Shin Seon-ok, a senior researcher at the Korea Labor Institute, explained, "The analysis confirms that not only the main jobs but also the second jobs of multiple job holders are generally distributed in workplaces with poor and unstable working conditions. It is necessary to analyze the labor mobility characteristics of workers in unstable employment and seek appropriate measures to cover safety net blind spots."