Wage divide widens in first half amid pandemic

The wage divide in Korea widened in the first half of the year amid the pandemic, with salaries of internet service firms rising sharply and those of tour agencies plunging, a study showed Sunday.

According to report by Korea Economic Research Institute (KERI), monthly pay of workers at internet service companies, such as Naver and Kakao, rose by an average of more than 1 million won ($850) in the period.

Workers at the internet service companies received an average of 37.94 million won in the first six months of 2021, sharply up from 28.83 million won the same period two years ago.

But workers at travel agencies and air carriers saw their monthly wages tumble by over 1 million won on average.

Their earnings in the January-June period of 2021 came to an average of 12.34 million won, down from 20.08 million won the same period two years ago.

The report was made by analyzing data from 1,340 companies listed on the local stock markets.

"By industrial sector, wage divide has been deepening after the outbreak of Covid-19 pounded the local industry, so the government subsidy for Covid-19-hit companies should continue to help them put back on track," KERI said.

Yonhap