Job growth expands modestly in April, but key industries contract

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Job growth expands modestly in April, but key industries contract

Published: 14 May. 2025, 18:02 Updated: 14 May. 2025, 20:15

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Job seekers look at employment notices posted at the Seoul Western Employment Welfare Plus Center in Mapo District, western Seoul, on May 14. [NEWS1]

Korea’s job market continued to expand modestly in April, according to government data released Wednesday, but growing weaknesses in key industries point to rising structural challenges.

The number of employed people aged 15 and older reached 28.89 million last month, up 194,000 from the same month a year earlier, Statistics Korea reported Wednesday.

It marked the fourth consecutive month of job growth in the 100,000-range.

The employment rate for those aged 15 and older rose by 0.2 percentage points on year to 63.2 percent, the highest for any April since data collection began in 1982. The unemployment rate declined slightly to 2.9 percent, down 0.1 percentage points from last year.

Despite the headline gains, job losses in critical sectors signal growing fragility.

Employment in manufacturing fell by 124,000 from a year earlier — the sharpest decline since the 151,000 recorded in February 2019. The sector has now posted 10 straight months of contraction since July of last year, with the pace of losses accelerating this year.

A sustained decline in manufacturing, which employs around 4.4 million people as a central pillar of Korea's labor market, poses risks to overall employment stability.

“Except for semiconductors, the manufacturing industry — including electronics components and computers — is broadly struggling, which is why employment is down,” said Gong Mi-sook, head of social statistics at Statistics Korea.

A job seeker looks at employment notices posted at the Seoul Western Employment Welfare Plus Center in Mapo District, western Seoul, on May 14. [NEWS1]

The construction sector also continued to lose jobs, shedding 150,000 positions amid ongoing industry stagnation. Construction employment has declined for 12 consecutive months.

The agriculture, forestry and fisheries sector lost 134,000 jobs, its steepest drop since November 2015. Statistics Korea attributed the downturn more to abnormally cold weather in April than to wildfires in the Yeongnam region, which encompasses the Gyeongsang provinces and cities of Busan, Daegu and Ulsan.

Meanwhile, health care and social welfare services, which include caregiving and senior employment programs, added 218,000 jobs.

The data underscores a growing reliance on public spending to support job creation as private-sector momentum weakens. Should domestic consumption continue to lag and global trade tensions intensify, the employment situation may deteriorate further.

"If changes in U.S. policy affect our export-driven industries, the ripple effects could eventually spread to domestic manufacturing and service sectors," said Jang Joo-sung, director of labor policy at the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

By age group, employment among those aged 60 and older increased by 340,000, and among those in their 30s by 93,000. But people in their 20s lost 179,000 jobs.

The number of people who reported that they were not seeking work for no specific reason — classified as “taking a break” — rose by 45,000.

Among younger people, that number increased by 15,000, marking a full year of consecutive increases.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY JANG WON-SEOK [[email protected]]