"440,000 'Just Resting' Youth... Minister of Employment to Implement Additional Measures in Q1 if Needed"

Minister Lee Jae-gap, IT and Software Young Experts Meeting

Minister of Employment and Labor Lee Jae-gap speaks at the "National Employment Support System Participants Meeting" held on the 3rd at the Southern Employment Center in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The number of young people 'taking a break' without any job-seeking activities has surged to a record high of 448,000. In response, Lee Jae-gap, Minister of Employment and Labor, announced on the 4th that "if necessary, additional youth employment measures will be prepared in the first quarter."

Minister Lee made these remarks while presiding over an 'Expert Meeting to Overcome the COVID-19 Youth Employment Crisis' at 2 p.m. at the Seoul Regional Employment and Labor Office in Jung-gu, Seoul.

The meeting was attended by Kim Ki-heon, Senior Research Fellow at the Korea Youth Policy Institute, and Yoon Dong-yeol, Professor of Business Administration at Konkuk University, among others.

He reported that the number of young people aged 15 to 29 in South Korea who are simply 'taking a break' reached 448,000, a 24.4% increase from 360,000 in 2019. According to Statistics Korea, among these young people taking a break, those in their twenties numbered 410,500, a 25.3% increase compared to the previous year.

As a result, the youth employment rate last year decreased by 1.3%, the largest decline among all age groups.

The government plans to expand vocational training through programs such as the National Employment Support System, which will be implemented starting this year, to prevent youth from falling into the economically inactive population.

By the first quarter of this year, a joint plan for 'Youth Employment Activation Measures' will be prepared by relevant ministries. The Ministry of Employment and Labor is consulting with the Ministry of Strategy and Finance to secure funding for youth employment measures.

Minister Lee stated, "Based on today's discussions, we will further improve parts of the existing youth policies that can be developed, and if new measures are needed, we will supplement them and work with relevant ministries to implement additional measures according to the youth employment situation within the first quarter."

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