Labor Market Trends Based on Employment Administration Statistics
New Job Openings and Job Seekers Decrease... Job Openings-to-Applicants Ratio 0.54
The growth rate of regular subscribers to employment insurance last month recorded the lowest level in 43 months. This was due to a decrease in the number of subscribers aged 29 and under and those in their 40s and below. The construction industry saw a decline in subscribers for 13 consecutive months, with the decrease expanding to the ten-thousand level.
The Ministry of Employment and Labor announced on the 9th the 'Labor Market Trends Based on Employment Administration Statistics for August 2024' containing these details.
As of the end of last month, the number of regular subscribers to employment insurance was 15,445,000, an increase of 220,000 (1.4%) compared to the same month last year. Although the number of subscribers has continued to rise this year, the growth rate has slowed, marking the lowest figure in 43 months since February 2021 (192,000).
By industry, the number of subscribers in manufacturing and service sectors increased, but the construction sector decreased. Manufacturing had 3,855,000 subscribers as of the end of last month, up 38,000 (1.0%) compared to the same month last year. However, excluding the automatic enrollment increase of foreign workers under the Employment Permit System, the number of subscribers actually decreased by 3,000.
The service sector showed an increasing trend centered on most industries such as health and welfare, business services, and professional sciences, recording 10,674,000 subscribers as of the end of last month. This represents an increase of 192,000 (1.8%) compared to the same month last year.
On the other hand, the construction industry recorded 767,000 subscribers, down 13,000, showing a decline for 13 consecutive months. While the decrease was in the thousands at the beginning of the year, the decline expanded to the ten-thousand level after June (10,000) and July (12,000).
By age group, the number of subscribers increased in their 30s (50,000), 50s (110,000), and 60 and above (205,000), while it decreased among those 29 and under (-103,000) and those in their 40s (-42,000). The decline in subscribers aged 29 and under and those in their 40s continues due to population decrease, with the drop also widening.
In particular, the decline among those 29 and under expanded to the hundred-thousand level since July. Last month, the decrease was prominent in industries such as information and communication (-21,000), wholesale and retail (-21,000), business facility management (-14,000), and health and welfare (-10,000).
At the end of last month, new applicants for unemployment benefits numbered 86,000, a decrease of 500 (0.6%) compared to the same month last year. The number of recipients of unemployment benefits was 625,000, down 2,000 (0.4%). Accordingly, the amount paid also decreased by 22.6 billion KRW (2.2%) to 1.0255 trillion KRW.
New job postings using Worknet totaled 182,000, down 69,000 (27.4%) compared to the same month last year. After the decline deepened in May (-28.6%) and June (-33.4%), it seemed to decrease in July (-14.5%), but the decline became more pronounced again last month.
New job seekers numbered 229,000, down 30,000 (8.0%). The downward trend intensified this year but seemed to rebound in July (0.5%), only to decline again afterward. The job openings-to-applicants ratio (number of jobs per job seeker) was 0.54, up from 0.49 the previous month, but still lower compared to 0.68 in the same month last year.
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