A Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) survey showed that when regular workers received 1 million won last year, nonregular workers received only 652,000 won. The wage gap between regular and nonregular workers widened to its largest in 11 years since 2014.
According to the Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL)'s "June 2025 survey on working conditions by employment type" released on the 30th, nonregular workers' hourly wages were 65.2% of regular workers', down 1.2 percentage points from a year earlier. In other words, when regular workers earned 1 million won, nonregular workers earned 652,000 won.
This ratio fell for two straight years, from 70.9% in 2023 to 66.4% in 2024 and 65.2% last year. The 65.2% figure is also the lowest since 2014 (62.2%).
Last year, the aggregates of hourly wages for regular workers was 28,599 won, up 3.2% from a year earlier. During the same period, nonregular workers inched up only 1.3% to 18,635 won.
A Labor Ministry official said this was due to an increase among nonregular workers in short-hour workers with relatively fewer hours and lower wages, those age 60 or older, women, and workers in health and social welfare services. The number of higher-paid nonregular workers in construction also fell amid the economic downturn, the official said.