The employment insurance regular subscriber growth rate and the number of job openings per job seeker from last month showed the worst levels since the financial crisis of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in the late 1990s.
According to the 'Labor market trends based on employment administration statistics for June 2025' announced by the Ministry of Employment and Labor on the 14th, the number of regular subscribers to employment insurance last month was 15.59 million, an increase of 1.2% (181,000 people) compared to a year ago. The growth rate of employment insurance subscribers was the lowest since the relevant statistics began to be compiled in 1997.
By industry, the number of employees decreased by 1,000 in manufacturing and by 19,000 in construction. The decline in manufacturing was centered around textiles, metal processing, machinery, rubber, plastics, and electrical equipment. In contrast, the service industry saw an increase of 201,000, led by growth in health and welfare, business services, professional science, accommodation and food services, and transportation and warehousing.
While the number of people looking for jobs is increasing, the situation continues where job openings are decreasing. The number of new job postings by corporations through the integrated employment service platform 'Job24' was 151,000, down 11.2% (19,000 people) from a year earlier. This marks a decline for the 28th consecutive month since March 2023. In contrast, the number of new job seekers increased by 11.9% (41,000 people) to 387,000.
The job vacancy index, calculated by dividing the number of job openings by the number of job seekers, was 0.39 last month. A year ago, it was 0.49. Last month's vacancy index was the lowest level since June 1999 (0.25). However, this figure only includes job openings and job seeking using Job24 and cannot accurately describe the overall labor market supply and demand situation.
Cheon Gyeong-gi, head of future employment analysis at the Ministry of Employment and Labor, noted, "The growth rate in the first half of the year is nearly at 0%, and with goods exports also being 'negative,' coupled with tariff uncertainties, the employment situation is actually tough in manufacturing."
Nevertheless, she stated, "It appears that private consumption will expand in the second half of the year, and the formulation of the supplementary budget is expected to stimulate demand in retail, accommodation, and restaurant industries, which will likely improve the employment situation in the service sector in the second half. I hope that the number of job openings on Job Korea, which began to show signs of recovery in the 2nd to 3rd weeks of last month, will continue to improve beginning in July."
The number of new applications for unemployment benefits last month was 86,000, an increase of 2.4% (2,000 people) compared to the same month last year. The number of recipients of unemployment benefits was 654,000, a 5% (31,000 people) increase, and the total payment amounted to 1.0516 trillion won, representing a 10.9% (103.6 billion won) increase.