On the back of the government's consumption coupons to restore people's livelihoods, the number of employed in September rose by the most in one year and seven months. However, the increase was confined to services that were directly boosted by consumption, such as accommodation and food, wholesale and retail, and arts, sports and leisure, while weakness persisted in manufacturing and construction, the industries that form the base of "quality jobs." In particular, only the youth employment rate fell among all age groups, suggesting the "structural employment crunch" remains unresolved.
According to the Employment Trends in September 2025 released by the National Data Office on the 17th, the number of employed last month was 29,154,000, up 312,000 from a year earlier. It was the first time since Feb. last year that the increase in the number of employed topped 300,000. Both the employment rate (63.7%) and the labor force participation rate (65.0%) hit record highs for September.
By industry, gains were pronounced in social and cultural services, led by health and social welfare services (304,000; up 10.1%), arts, sports and leisure (75,000; up 14.5%), and education services (56,000; up 2.9%). Accommodation and food services (26,000; up 1.1%) and wholesale and retail (28,000; up 0.7%) also rebounded, benefiting from policies to spur consumption.
Jang Ju-seong, Director in the Ministry of Economy and Finance's labor policy division, said, "The second round of consumption coupons and culture coupons, combined with holiday-driven demand and other policy factors, helped revive domestic demand."
By contrast, employment weakness continued in traditional job-base industries such as manufacturing (-61,000), construction (-84,000), and agriculture, forestry and fisheries (-146,000). In manufacturing, exports of some items like automobiles and semiconductors were solid, but external uncertainty and trade risks still acted as constraints on an employment recovery.
In the slumping construction sector, the decline in the number of employed narrowed from August (132,000), but this is attributed to a base effect following a sharp drop in the second half of last year. The employment downturns in manufacturing and construction have continued for one year and two months, and one year and four months, respectively. The decline in the number of employed in agriculture, forestry and fisheries was the largest in about 10 years since Nov. 2015 (-172,000). The combined effects of population decline due to aging and extreme weather such as cold waves were at play.
The government assesses that domestic demand stimulus policies have in part helped draw younger people who were economically inactive back into the labor market. While those in their 60s and older had driven employment gains so far, the number of employed in their 30s to 50s increased in September.
In fact, both the labor force participation rate and the employment rate rose together among those in their 30s (83.6%, up 1.4 percentage points; 81.4%, up 1.0 percentage point), 40s (81.8%, up 1.0 percentage point; 80.4%, up 0.8 percentage point), and 50s (79.2%, up 0.5 percentage point; 77.9%, up 0.3 percentage point).
The problem is the employment situation for young people (ages 15–29). The number of employed youth fell by 146,000 from a year earlier, with the employment rate dropping 0.7 percentage point to 45.1%. The labor force participation rate also fell 1.0 percentage point to 47.3%. Jobs added by the consumption coupon effect were largely concentrated in short-term, low-wage positions, failing to translate into "quality youth jobs."
The government expects the policy to create "a virtuous cycle of employment and domestic demand," in which economically inactive people who enter the labor market increase their consumption again. However, if the "brief rebound" driven by domestic demand stimulus fades, this virtuous cycle is likely to weaken.
Cho Jun-mo, a professor of economics at Sungkyunkwan University, said, "When the effect of the consumption coupons wears off, base effects could make the employment deterioration appear pronounced again, so it is not something to be elated or dejected about," adding, "Fundamentally, we must focus on lifting the economic growth rate, which does not even reach half of the potential growth rate."
Joo Won, head of economic research at the Hyundai Research Institute, also said, "We need to move quickly to reduce the decline in manufacturing through swift tariff negotiations and begin supporting the construction cycle."
The government plans to concentrate policy capacity on job creation through the artificial intelligence (AI) great transition and an ultra-innovation economy, and on improving youth employment conditions. Director Jang said, "We will deliver the second round of consumption coupons without a hitch and make thorough preparations for a large-scale joint discount festival," adding, "We will minimize damage to corporations from U.S. tariff imposition and work to create jobs preferred by young people."