Ministry of Employment Announces January Labor Market Trends
Impact of Population Decline...Decrease Also in 40s Age Group
The number of young workers under the age of 29 enrolled in employment insurance has decreased for 17 consecutive months compared to the same month last year.
According to the 'January 2024 Labor Market Trends' announced by the Ministry of Employment and Labor on the 13th, as of the end of last month, the total number of regular employment insurance subscribers was 15,058,000, an increase of 341,000 (2.3%) compared to the same month last year.
Excluding the increase of foreign subscribers under the Employment Permit System (EPS) of 126,000, the increase in domestic subscribers was 215,000.
By industry, the number of subscribers in manufacturing was 3,827,000, an increase of 98,000 compared to last year. However, excluding foreign workers under the EPS, it decreased by 11,000.
Most sectors such as metal processing, food products, other transportation equipment, and automobiles continued to show an increasing trend, while electronics & telecommunications, textiles, and clothing & fur sectors decreased. The electrical equipment manufacturing industry saw a slight slowdown in growth due to reduced demand for electric vehicles, which are upstream industries of primary and secondary batteries that had been driving growth.
The number of subscribers in the electronics & telecommunications manufacturing sector continued to decline for two consecutive months since December last year. Specifically, the semiconductor sector saw a decrease of 1,200, marking its first decline, and electronic components sectors such as displays and circuit boards decreased by 2,600, continuing the downward trend.
The number of subscribers in the service industry was recorded at 10,313,000, an increase of 235,000 compared to last year. The health and welfare sector increased by 11,400 due to rising demand for health and welfare services, and sectors such as accommodation and food services (40,000), business services (36,000), and transportation and warehousing (23,000) continued to grow due to increased face-to-face activities, changes in purchasing methods, and outsourcing of service areas.
On the other hand, the wholesale and retail trade sector decreased by 18,000 due to a slowdown in private consumption, and the real estate sector decreased by 2,000 due to the downturn in the real estate market. The wholesale and retail trade sector has been declining since January last year, mainly in general retail and retail of home appliances and information and communication equipment.
By age group, those under 29 and those in their 40s decreased by 47,000 and 6,000 respectively. The number of employment insurance subscribers in the under-29 age group decreased by 1.9% compared to the same month last year.
Cheon Kyung-gi, Director of the Future Employment Analysis Division at the Ministry of Employment, explained, "The number of employment insurance subscribers in their 20s has been most affected by population decline and has decreased for 17 consecutive months since September 2022."
Other age groups saw increases of 72,000 in their 30s, 125,000 in their 50s, and 197,000 in those aged 60 and over.
New applications for unemployment benefits last month totaled 201,000, an increase of 13,000 (7%) compared to the same month last year. The increase was centered on manufacturing (3,900), business facilities (3,300), professional and scientific services (1,700), and construction (1,400), while public administration (1,400) and educational services (600) saw decreases.
During the same period, the number of unemployment benefit recipients was 614,000, and the total amount paid was 939.1 billion won, increases of 5.7% (33,000 people) and 10.9% (92.6 billion won) respectively compared to the same month last year.
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