After Repeated Short-Term Employment, the Tables Turned: Individuals Claimed Unemployment Benefits Up to 7 Times, Exploiting 600 Billion Won

113,000 People Claimed Unemployment Benefits Three or More Times in the Past Five Years
65,000 Cases Involved Repeated Rehiring at the Same Workplace

Over the past five years, the number of repeat recipients who have received job-seeking benefits (unemployment benefits) three or more times has surpassed 110,000 as of last year. There was even a case found in which an individual collected unemployment benefits up to seven times.

The Asia Business Daily DB

According to data submitted to the National Assembly's Committee on Climate, Energy, Environment and Labor on September 29 by People Power Party lawmaker Kim Sohee, the number of individuals who received unemployment benefits three or more times within the past five years totaled 113,000 last year.

The number of recipients who received unemployment benefits three or more times increased from 102,000 in 2022 to 110,000 in 2023, and 113,000 in 2024, with last year also recording 113,000. For this year, as of July, a total of 77,000 people have already collected unemployment benefits three or more times.

The total amount of unemployment benefits paid to these repeat recipients last year amounted to 59.9754 billion won. This translates to an average of approximately 5.3 million won per person.

The number of people who received unemployment benefits five or more times also showed an upward trend. While the number of repeat recipients collecting benefits at least five times was 13,000 in 2022, it increased to 14,000 in both 2023 and 2024, and reached 15,000 last year.

The total unemployment benefits paid to those who claimed benefits five or more times last year amounted to 61.086 billion won. The highest number of claims recorded by a single person was seven.

The unemployment benefit is a system designed to support the livelihood of workers who are involuntarily separated from their jobs and are engaged in reemployment activities, provided they have been covered by employment insurance for at least 180 days within 18 months prior to their separation. There is no specific limit to the number of times one can claim benefits.

There were also notable cases where individuals repeatedly quit and were rehired at the same workplace to claim unemployment benefits. The number of such cases was 58,000 in 2022, 66,000 in 2023, 67,000 in 2024, and 65,000 last year, consistently hovering around 60,000 annually in recent years.

Labor authorities also uncovered cases where, contrary to the actual reason for leaving, individuals fabricated documents to make it appear as if their contract had expired or that they were dismissed for cause, thereby illicitly claiming unemployment benefits. According to a special investigation conducted by the Ministry of Employment and Labor, from 2022 to 2025, a total of 412 individuals were found to have falsely reported involuntary separation to obtain unemployment benefits. The total improper amount received by these individuals was 3.1 billion won.

The total number of detected cases of fraudulent unemployment benefit claims was 23,869 in 2022, 22,892 in 2023, 24,418 in 2024, and 25,105 last year.

Representative types of fraudulent claims include misreporting the actual period of employment or the reason for leaving work, or failing to declare reemployment during the period of benefit receipt.

For example, individual A was caught after finding a new job while claiming unemployment benefits, but colluding with the employer to receive wages in cash, thereby hiding the fact of employment while continuing to receive benefits. In another case, individual B voluntarily resigned from their company, and, in conspiracy with a former business partner, pretended to have signed a short-term employment contract without actually working, in order to claim unemployment benefits.

Authorities also uncovered organized fraud schemes involving brokers. Individual C, who operated five workplaces in Daegu, was found to have falsely recruited workers through four brokers over the past seven years, illicitly pocketing a total of 540 million won in unemployment benefits and other payments.

In the past five years, a total of four cases of fraudulent unemployment benefit claims involving brokers have been detected. The Ministry of Employment and Labor referred all relevant individuals to the prosecution for indictment.

If fraudulent receipt of unemployment benefits is confirmed, not only is payment restricted, but recipients may also be required to pay up to five times the improperly received amount in additional charges. Offenders may also face criminal penalties, including imprisonment for up to five years or fines of up to 50 million won.

Assemblywoman Kim Sohee stated, "Simple administrative guidelines or monitoring alone cannot prevent the abuse of the system by the 110,000 short-term quit-and-rehire cases. In addition to the government's plan to reduce benefits, there is a fundamental need for institutional reform, such as raising the employment insurance eligibility from the current 180 days to 12 months."

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