May Employment Increase Limited to 80,000... Government Announces "Strengthened Policy Response"

Joint 'Job TF' by Related Ministries

Last month, the increase in the number of employed persons shrank to its smallest scale in 39 months, and Kim Byunghwan, the 1st Vice Minister of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, stated, "We will strengthen policy responses to ensure that the employment improvement trend continues."

On the 12th, the Ministry of Economy and Finance held the 17th Job Task Force (TF) meeting with related ministries such as the Ministry of Employment and Labor and Statistics Korea to review the recent employment situation and discuss future response directions.

At the meeting, Vice Minister Kim evaluated, "The employment rate for those aged 15 to 64 reached 70% for the first time last month, but the increase in employed persons has shrunk due to a decline in employment in the retail and wholesale and construction sectors, and difficulties for vulnerable employment groups continue."

However, he diagnosed that the reduced increase in employed persons last month was due to temporary factors. He said, "There were temporary factors affecting the employment trend survey period, such as the inclusion of holidays and an increase in rainy days, which worsened weather conditions," and added, "Domestic demand indicators such as average daily export amount, card approval amount, and the number of inbound overseas travelers in June are also showing improvement, which is expected to have a positive effect on future employment."

Furthermore, he stated, "We plan to closely monitor employment situations by industry and group, and strengthen tailored job support efforts for vulnerable sectors in cooperation with related ministries centered on the Job TF."

According to the 'May Employment Trends' announced by Statistics Korea on the same day, the number of employed persons aged 15 and over last month was 28,915,000, an increase of only 80,000 compared to the same month last year, marking the smallest increase in 39 months.

The employment rate for those aged 15 to 64, the OECD comparison standard, was 70.0%, up 0.1 percentage points from the same month last year, but the employment rate for the youth group (aged 15 to 29) was 46.9%, down 0.7 percentage points from the same month last year.

Lee Seonghee, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Employment and Labor, said, "The increase in the number of employed persons is decreasing in some sectors such as retail and wholesale and construction, and uncertainty is growing as the employment rate declines in the late 20s and 50s age groups," adding, "We will devise support measures based on various statistical analyses such as employment insurance databases and business labor force surveys, as well as on-site inspections."