"Enduring the Freeze" When Will the Job Market Frozen by COVID-19 Thaw?

Economic Outlook Worsens Due to COVID-19... Companies Reduce Hiring
Experts Say "Next Year's Job Market Will Also Be Unstable"

On the 16th of last month, a job seeker visited an Employment Welfare Plus Center in Seoul and is looking at the job information bulletin board. / Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suwan] "I really need to get a job next year, but can I do it?", "What's the point of lowering my standards to apply? They aren't hiring anyone..."

The employment freeze caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has lasted for nearly a year, deepening the sighs of job seekers. Companies are reducing their hiring scale by selecting only experienced workers or cutting down on new hires. In particular, some companies have not conducted any new recruitment at all, indicating that the job market recovery will not be easy. Experts predict that the hiring market next year will also worsen as companies are currently suffering damage.

The employment drought is expected to continue for the time being. According to Statistics Korea on the 16th, the number of employed people in November was 27,241,000, a decrease of 273,000 compared to the same period last year. The number of employed people has been declining for nine consecutive months since last March. This is the longest period since the IMF financial crisis when employment decreased for 16 consecutive months from January 1998 to April 1999.

By age group, only those aged 60 and over saw an increase in employment, while all other age groups decreased. Employment among those 60 and over increased by 372,000, but those in their 20s (-209,000), 30s (-194,000), 40s (-135,000), and 50s (-74,000) all decreased.

The contraction of the job market due to COVID-19 is also reflected in related surveys. In September, the Korea Economic Research Institute under the Federation of Korean Industries surveyed the hiring plans for the second half of the year among the top 500 companies by sales. Half (50.0%) of the 120 responding companies said they had no plans for new hires. 24.2% of companies said they would not hire any new employees in the second half of the year.

The reasons for not increasing new college graduate hires included △domestic and international economic and industry downturn due to COVID-19 impact (69.8%) △lack of internal demand such as an increase in idle personnel (7.5%).

The prolonged COVID-19 pandemic is worsening the economy and household financial conditions. Photo by Yonhap News

The problem does not end there. Due to the prolonged COVID-19 situation, forecasts predict that the economic recession will continue next year.

In a recent report titled "Current Status and Policy Suggestions for Youth Employment" released by the Korea Development Institute (KDI), it was analyzed that the global health crisis will likely cause continued economic recession and overall employment contraction.

Given this situation, job seekers are increasingly expressing despair over the narrowing job market. Although they are intensifying their job search efforts, most fail to even pass the document screening stage.

A job seeker A (28), who has been searching for a job for three years, said, "I postponed my university graduation repeatedly, but eventually had to enter the job market. Because of COVID-19, it's difficult to find a job, so I am preparing while sleeping only five hours a day." He added, "I have already failed several times in document screening and interviews. Now, even my motivation is disappearing," expressing difficulties amid the employment freeze.

Another job seeker B (26), preparing for a public enterprise, said, "Even though I work hard, I don't pass even once, so I feel pathetic. The number of people preparing is increasing, but the number of hires is limited." He appealed, "Thinking that the COVID-19 situation will continue, I can't see a future."

Experts analyzed that even if the economy recovers in the future, the employment situation will not improve.

Professor Kim Taegi of Dankook University's Department of Economics said about the hiring market, "I don't think next year will be better than this year." He explained, "Due to COVID-19, employment practices have changed, and companies are not hiring many people. Even with remote work, there is no difficulty in progressing work, so there is no perceived need to increase hiring."

He continued, "Currently, there is almost no new graduate hiring. Only experienced workers needed for specific tasks are being hired." He warned, "If this situation continues, employment will worsen further. Despite this, the government is trying to compensate for employment deterioration with public part-time jobs. Without drastic government measures, employment deterioration is inevitable."

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