The decline in the number of employees in enterprises has temporarily slowed. The number of employees in enterprises has continuously decreased from January to April compared to the same period last year, but in May it showed a level similar to that of a year ago. The manufacturing and construction industries have maintained a decline for over a year, causing the employment situation to worsen.

According to the enterprise labor force survey results released by the Ministry of Employment and Labor on the 26th, as of the end of last month, the number of employees in enterprises with one or more workers was 20,299,000, showing a level similar to that of the same month last year.

On April 30, construction workers are working at a newly constructed apartment site in downtown Seoul. /News1

The decline in the number of employees in enterprises compared to the same month last year had continued from January to April this year. This was the second-longest decline since the statistical aggregation began in 2009, following the period of the COVID-19 pandemic from March 2020 to February 2021. However, this decline has temporarily slowed in May.

Kim Jae-hun, head of the labor market survey section at the Ministry of Employment and Labor, noted, “It is too early to say that the decline has stopped since May, as we cannot predict the number of employees in enterprises for June,” but added, “It is true that the decline is slowing.”

The trend of the number of employees in enterprises with at least one employee. /Ministry of Employment and Labor

By industry, there were increases in health and social welfare services (87,000 employees, 3.6%), professional and scientific technical services (18,000 employees, 1.3%), and real estate (15,000 employees, 3.4%). In contrast, there were declines in construction (104,000 employees, 7.0%) and wholesale and retail trade (29,000 employees, 1.3%). The manufacturing industry, which accounts for about 18% of the total number of employees across all industries, saw a decrease of 12,000 employees, marking 20 consecutive months of decline since October 2023. The construction industry has also been in decline for the 12th month since June of last year.

Examining by employment status, regular employees increased by 11,000 (0.1%) compared to the same month last year, while temporary workers rose by 5,000 (0.2%), and other types of employees decreased by 16,000 (1.2%).

New hiring in May reached 826,000, primarily in health and social welfare services, associations and organizations, and repair and other personal services.

As of April, the total nominal wage amount per worker in enterprises with one or more regular employees was 3,971,000 won, which is an increase of 105,000 won (2.7%) compared to the same month last year. The real wage growth rate, considering the consumer price level, was recorded at 0.6%. The working hours per worker in April were 165.5 hours, an increase of 6.1 hours compared to the same month last year, attributed to an increase of one working day in the calendar.