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Employment climbs as Korea adds 193,000 more jobs in March

Published: 09 Apr. 2025, 10:04 Updated: 09 Apr. 2025, 18:57

A person looks at job postings at a job fair in Yangcheon District, western Seoul, on April 1. [YONHAP]

Korea added 193,000 more jobs in March 2025 compared to the same month in 2024, according to data released Wednesday by Statistics Korea. The number of employed people aged 15 and older rose to 28.59 million.

Job growth has remained in the 100,000 range for three straight months following a brief dip in December 2024, when the end of government job programs led to a loss of 52,000 positions.

Construction and manufacturing continued to see sharp declines. Construction employment fell by 185,000, the largest year-on-year drop since records began in 2013, and marked the sector’s 11th consecutive monthly decline.

Manufacturing lost 112,000 jobs, the steepest decline since November 2020 and the ninth straight month of contraction.

Job gains were concentrated in public and service sectors. Health and social welfare services added 212,000 jobs. Public administration, defense and social security-related jobs rose by 87,000, while finance and insurance added 65,000.

Youth employment dropped significantly, with the number of workers aged 15 to 29 down by 206,000. Employment also fell among people in their 40s and 50s, by 49,000 and 26,000 respectively.

The employment rate for those aged 15 and older was 62.5 percent, up 0.1 percentage point from a year earlier. The number of those unemployed rose by 26,000 to 918,000.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.


BY JEONG HYE-JEONG [[email protected]]