November 21, 2024

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Job-seekers receive consultation at a job fair in Incheon on Friday. (Yonhap)

The number of South Koreans without a job or seeking a job marked an all-time high in the first half of this year, government data showed Sunday.

According to Statistics Korea, there were 4.058 million people in the country with a college degree who were considered an "economically inactive population," which refers to those aged 15 or over who are unable to or unwilling to work. This includes students, homemakers, those preparing for state exams for government official posts and people who simply gave up employment.

The number of economically inactive citizens with higher education in the first half of this year increased by 72,000 compared to the same period in 2023 and was the highest H1 figure since the government started tallying in 1999. The previous high had been in the H1 of 2021 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which surpassed the 4 million mark for the first time at 4.048 million.

The figure decreased the next year by 130,600, but increased for the subsequent two years.

The ratio of college graduates among the non-work force is higher than ever, recording 25.1 percent in H1 this year to surpass the 25 percent mark for the first time.

Of the college-educated and economically active, those aged between 15 and 29 account for 591,000, hinting at the troubles faced by the country's youth population. Last year's report showed the youth population who said they did not work, without a specific reason -- such as due to illness or academic reasons -- was 398,000, up 13,000 from the year before.

Another data by Statistics Korea showed that as of May, there were 3.76 million people in the 15-29 age group who got jobs.

About 31.4 percent of them said their first job was a non-guaranteed one, contracted to work for one year or less. The figure also marked an all-time high since the government began keeping records in 2008.

By Yoon Min-sik (minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)