Trend of Young Adults Prioritizing Work-Life Balance Continues
Job Expertise Also Considered
Desired Salary is Over 3 Million Won
It was found that young people prioritize wages and welfare levels over company size when choosing a workplace. The desired wage was over 3 million won, and essential welfare benefits included special leave such as sabbaticals, flexible working hours, and remote work.
The Ministry of Employment and Labor and the Korea Employment Information Service announced the results of the "2024 First Half Youth Employment Trend Survey" on the 5th. This survey was conducted from July 12 to 31 nationwide across 17 cities and provinces targeting 4,001 young people aged 19 to 34.
The majority of respondents valued wages and welfare, prioritizing work-life balance. In the question about preferred factors when choosing a workplace, multiple responses showed answers such as "If wages and welfare are good, company size does not matter" (87.0%), "Work-life balance is more important than wages and welfare" (63.0%), and "If wages are high, I am willing to work even as a non-regular employee" (59.1%).
In the section asking about the criteria for a good job according to young people, "wages and welfare" (53.5%) stood out. This was followed by "work-life balance" (19.5%), "job expertise" (8.7%), "fair compensation" (8.2%), and "flexible and horizontal atmosphere" (3.9%).
The desired wage level was over 3 million won. 25.9% of respondents answered "between 3 million and less than 3.5 million won," followed by "over 5 million won" (19.7%) and "between 4 million and less than 5 million won" (16.7%). Regarding appropriate working hours, "between 40 and less than 52 hours" (50.0%) was the most common response.
The top essential in-house welfare benefit was "special leave such as sabbaticals and long-term service leave" (38.5%). This was followed by "flexible working hours" (35.4%) and "remote work" (31.1%). This indicates that young people value work-life balance and want to use time and space flexibly while working.
When asked what is most important in performing their duties, "aptitude and interest" (67.7%) ranked higher than "education level" (54.5%) or "skill level" (59.4%). Regarding consideration of job changes, 48.4% answered that they are "considering a job change."
Senior Research Fellow Kim Yubin of the Korea Labor Institute stated, "This survey shows the need for policy support that meets the demands of young people," adding, "Before employment, young people should explore jobs that fit their aptitude through career counseling and work experience, and after employment, it is necessary to support systems that allow free choice of working hours and methods as well as career development."
Lee Jeonghan, Director of Employment Policy at the Ministry of Employment and Labor, said, "We will seek various measures through discussions at the Economic, Social and Labor Council to support young people in companies to use time and space more flexibly and to expand the choice rights of workers and companies.
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