Key facts
- South Korea's youth labor force participation rate (ages 15-29) dropped to 47.2% in May, down 2.3 percentage points year-on-year.
- The unemployment rate for this age group rose to 7.2%, with 266,000 youths unemployed.
- The average time to complete college and related preparations increased to 4 years and 5.7 months, the longest since 2007.
- Nearly half (48.6%) of graduates remained unemployed for over a year, a post-2009 high.
The labor force participation rate among South Koreans aged 15 to 29 declined in May compared to the previous year, indicating growing challenges in securing employment amidst economic uncertainties. The rate fell by 2.3 percentage points to 47.2 percent.
The unemployment rate for this age group rose by 0.6 percentage points to 7.2 percent, with the number of unemployed youths reaching 266,000. Correspondingly, the employment rate for young people decreased by 2.4 percentage points to 43.8 percent.
Data also revealed that the average time taken to complete college, including two-year programs, has extended to 4 years and 5.7 months, the longest period recorded since the ministry began compiling such data in 2007. This extension is attributed to more students taking leaves of absence to prepare for employment or professional license examinations.
Among those who finished their degrees, 84.8 percent had previously held a job, a 1.6 percentage point decrease from the prior year. Of these, 27 percent found their jobs highly relevant to their degrees, a slight drop of 0.3 percentage points.
Regarding initial employment, 42.1 percent of youths earned between 2 million won (approximately US$1,350) and less than 3 million won per month, while 23.3 percent earned between 1.5 million won and less than 2 million won.
Furthermore, the proportion of young people remaining unemployed for over a year after graduation reached 48.6 percent, marking the highest figure since 2009.