February Employment Up by 329,000... Job Growth Led by 60+ Age Group (Update)

Statistics Korea February Employment Trends Announcement

Last month, the number of employed people increased by nearly 330,000 compared to the same period last year, maintaining an increase of over 300,000 for two consecutive months. The rise in jobs among the elderly aged 60 and over contributed to this, while employment among the youth and those in their 40s, who are key drivers of economic growth, continued to decline.

According to the 'February Employment Trends' released by Statistics Korea on the 13th, the number of employed people aged 15 and over last month was 28,043,000, an increase of 329,000 (1.2%) compared to the same month last year.

The increase in the number of employed people had dropped to the 200,000 range in November (277,000) and December (285,000) last year but recovered to over 300,000 again this year in January (380,000) and last month.

By age group, employment increased by 297,000 among those aged 60 and over, 84,000 in their 50s, and 71,000 in their 30s, while it decreased by 62,000 in their 40s and 29,000 in their 20s.

By industry, employment increased in public administration, defense, and social security administration (98,000), information and communications (80,000), and professional, scientific, and technical services (78,000). Conversely, it decreased in agriculture, forestry, and fishing (-33,000), education services (-22,000), and real estate (-21,000).

By employment status, among wage workers, permanent workers increased by 357,000 and temporary workers by 207,000, while daily workers decreased by 177,000.

The employment rate for those aged 15 and over was 61.6%, up 0.5 percentage points from a year earlier. This is the highest February figure since monthly statistics began in July 1982.

The employment rate for those aged 15-64, the OECD comparison standard, was 68.7%, up 0.7 percentage points from the same month last year. The employment rate for youth (aged 15-29) was 46.0%, up 0.5 percentage points from the same month last year.

The unemployment rate was 3.2%, up 0.1 percentage points from the same month last year. The number of unemployed was 915,000, an increase of 25,000 compared to the same month last year. The number of unemployed increased among those aged 60 and over (36,000) and those in their 30s (26,000). The youth unemployment rate was 6.5%, down 0.5 percentage points from the same month last year.

The economically inactive population decreased by 183,000 from a year earlier, recording 16,568,000.