The number of young South Koreans neither working nor looking for a job surpassed 500,000 last month for the first time since records began in 2003. Youth employment also saw its biggest drop in 49 months as job opportunities in manufacturing and construction shrank.
According to Statistics Korea on March 12, the number of people aged 15 to 29 classified as “just resting” reached 504,000 last month, up 61,000 from a year ago. The number had previously peaked at 497,000 in February 2023 during the COVID-19 pandemic, but this is the first time it has exceeded 500,000. The “just resting” category refers to those who are neither working nor looking for jobs, suggesting that more young people are stepping away from the job market due to difficulties in finding work.
The youth employment rate was 44.3% last month, down 1.7 percentage points from a year earlier, the biggest drop since January 2021 (-2.9 percentage points). The youth unemployment rate also rose to 7.0%, the highest in 23 months since March 2023 (7.1%). Gong Mi-sook, head of social statistics at Statistics Korea, said, “The job market’s focus on experienced workers and on-demand hiring is making it harder for young job seekers.”
