SEOUL, Jan. 10 — South Korea’s employment growth slowed down last year on the manufacturing industry’s slump and the faltering real estate market, statistical office data showed Wednesday. The number of the employed people aged 15 or higher increased 327,000 over the year to 28,416,000 in 2023 after surging 816,000 in the previous year, according to Statistics Korea. The labor market remained sluggish amid the lingering economic uncertainties, affected by the weak manufacturing sector and the high interest rates leading to the housing market downturn. The number of jobs among manufacturers diminished 43,000 in 2023 after expanding 135,000 in the previous year. Jobs lost in the wholesale and retail and the real estate sectors stood at 37,000 and 18,000 last year. Employment in the health and social welfare services and the eatery and lodging segments advanced 143,000 and 114,000 respectively. The overall job increase was driven by the elderly people. The number of jobs for those aged 60 or older expanded 366,000 in 2023 compared to the previous year, but the figures for those in their 20s and 40s fell 82,000 and 54,000 each. The number of regular employees climbed 478,000, but the readings for irregular workers and daily laborers shrank 61,000 and 90,000 last year. The number of the self-employed who hired workers increased 54,000, while the figure for the self-employed without employees gained 3,000. Employment rate for those aged 15 or older rose 0.5 percentage points over the year to 62.6 percent in 2023, while the OECD-method hiring rate for those aged 15-64 went up 0.7 percentage points to 69.2 percent. The number of the unemployed people stood at 787,000 in 2023, down 46,000 from a year earlier. Jobless rate fell 0.2 percentage points to 2.7 percent. The expanded jobless rate declined 0.7 percentage points from a year earlier to 9.3 percent in December, while the corresponding rate for those aged 15-29 slumped 1.5 percentage points to 15.5 percent. The official unemployment rate gauges those who are immediately available for work but failed to get a job for the past four weeks despite efforts to seek a job actively. The expanded jobless rate, called labor underutilization indicator, adds those who are discouraged from searching a job, those who work part-time against their will to work full-time, and those who prepare to get a job after college graduation, to the official unemployment rate. The economically inactive population, who had no willingness to seek a job and remained unemployed, fell 134,000 over the year to 16,204,000 in 2023. The reading for discouraged job seekers reduced 81,000 to 362,000 last year. The number of the “take-a-rest” group, who replied that they took a rest during a job survey period, added 74,000 to 2,351,000. The take-a-rest group is considered important as it can include those who are too discouraged to seek a job for an extended period.
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