At employment centers run by the Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL), the number of jobs per job seeker last year hit an all-time low. The downturn in domestic demand, including in construction, is seen as a factor.
According to "Employment center job openings, job seekers and employment status" on e-Nara Index on the 18th, last year's job openings-to-applicants ratio at employment centers was tallied at 0.36.
The job openings-to-applicants ratio is an indicator meaning the number of new job openings compared with the number of new job seekers. It is also interpreted as the number of jobs per job seeker.
Last year's figure is the lowest since official statistics were approved in 2001. It was lower than 2020 (0.39), when the labor market shock from the spread of COVID-19 was severe. The ratio had hovered between 0.4 and 0.7.
The number of job seekers last year was 3,599,671, holding at a level similar to previous years. In contrast, the number of job openings fell sharply year over year to 1,295,179.
Job openings rose from 1.3 million in 2020, when COVID-19 spread, to 1.97 million in 2021 and 2.4 million in 2022. They then declined to 2.08 million in 2023 and 1.65 million in 2024, before plunging last year to around 1,295,000.
These statistics combine job opening and job seeker applications received through frontline employment centers, where the labor ministry provides public employment services, and the WorkNet website. While they may not fully represent the entire labor market, they serve as an indicator to gauge shifts in employment trends.
The decline in jobs is analyzed as stemming from weak employment among young people and in manufacturing and construction. On an annual basis, last year's youth employment rate was 45%, the lowest in four years since 2021 (44.2%). The number of employed in construction saw the biggest drop in 12 years (-125,000), and manufacturing also posted the largest decline in six years (-73,000).