Youth Employment Crisis Deepens... Government Accelerates "Youth Job Recovery Plan"

Last month, for the first time in 17 months, the number of employed people turned to a decline, and the youth employment rate also dropped sharply, prompting the government to begin developing a "Youth Job Recovery Plan." With continued sluggish employment in key industries such as manufacturing, construction, and agriculture, forestry, and fisheries, and the job market for young people worsening, the government has decided to expand customized measures by industry and increase support for youth recruitment.

According to the Ministry of Data and Statistics on the 28th, the number of employed people last month decreased by 40,000 compared to the same month last year. This is the first year-on-year decline in the number of employed people since December 2024. The employment rate also fell by 0.5 percentage points compared to a year ago.

By industry, the number of people employed in manufacturing decreased by 140,000, significantly exceeding the previous month's decrease of 55,000. Employment in the construction sector fell by 43,000, and in agriculture, forestry, and fisheries by 121,000. The government analyzed that the poor performance of key industries with a large share of employment led to an overall contraction of the job market.

The KB Good Job Employment Fair was held on the 27th at COEX in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Many job seekers visiting the fair were lining up to enter the venue. 2026.04.27 Photo by Dongjoo Yoon

The employment situation for young people has worsened even further. The youth employment rate fell from 46.2% last year to 43.8% this year, a drop of 2.4 percentage points. The youth unemployment rate rose from 6.6% to 7.2%. The government explained that changes in population structure, industrial restructuring, and the expansion of hiring experienced workers were each factors making it more difficult for young people to find jobs.

Accordingly, the government plans to closely analyze the employment situation, focusing on underperforming industries such as manufacturing, construction, and agriculture, as well as vulnerable groups like young people, and to sequentially announce sector-specific measures, including a tentatively named "Youth Job Recovery Plan."

Existing youth employment projects are also being accelerated. The K-New Deal Academy will begin recruiting participants this month and start operations next month. The tax delinquency management team recruitment project will hire 5,500 people in July and 4,000 in September. The government also plans to introduce support measures to strengthen job-seeking capabilities through education in advanced fields such as AI and to promote the recruitment of young people by companies.

The government will additionally identify support measures to address field-level difficulties in industries such as manufacturing, construction, and agriculture, forestry, and fisheries, and, for the time being, will hold weekly job task force meetings to monitor employment conditions and announce follow-up measures.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.