Unemployment Benefits Exceed 1 Trillion Won for 8 Consecutive Months, Marking Longest Streak on Record

Employment Slump Continues in Manufacturing and Construction
Only 0.44 Jobs Available per Job Seeker

The amount of unemployment benefits paid has remained in the 1 trillion won range for eight consecutive months through last month, marking the longest period on record.

According to the "Labor Market Trends Based on Employment Administration Statistics for September 2025," released by the Ministry of Employment and Labor on October 15, the number of regular subscribers to employment insurance last month was 15,641,000, an increase of 191,000 (1.2%) compared to the same month last year. The number of regular subscribers maintained an increase in the 180,000 range from April (184,000) to August (182,000) this year, but the growth expanded last month.

By industry, the number of employment insurance subscribers in the service sector (219,000) continued to rise, while manufacturing (-11,000) and construction (-18,000) maintained a downward trend. Manufacturing turned negative in July (-1,000) for the first time in 54 months since December 2020 (-21,000), and continued the negative trend in August (-5,000) and through last month. Construction has been declining for 26 consecutive months, although the rate of decrease has somewhat slowed.

The number of new applications for job-seeking benefits (unemployment benefits) was 89,000, an increase of 8,000 (10.0%). This was due to an increase in new applicants in sectors such as manufacturing (2,000) and health and welfare (1,000). The number of recipients of job-seeking benefits was 625,000, an increase of 24,000 (4.0%). The total amount paid also rose by 10.48 billion won (10.9%) to reach 1.0673 trillion won. Since February, the amount of job-seeking benefits paid has remained above 1 trillion won every month.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor explained that the unemployment benefit payout exceeding 1 trillion won for eight consecutive months is the longest period since related statistics began to be compiled. Previously, during the COVID-19 outbreak, the payout exceeded 1 trillion won for seven months, from February to August 2021. The ministry attributed the increase in payout to both the rise in the number of insured persons and the continued increase in the per capita payment amount of job-seeking benefits.

The number of new job openings using Employment24 was 165,000, a decrease of 6,000 (3.5%). New job seekers totaled 378,000, an increase of 37,000 (10.8%). The job openings-to-applicants ratio, which indicates the number of jobs per job seeker, was 0.44, down by 0.06 points.