May Employment Insurance Subscribers Increase by 440,000... Unemployment Benefits Paid Over 1 Trillion Won for 4 Consecutive Months

Service Industry Subscribers Increase by 357,000... Decline in Accommodation and Food Services Slows
Unemployment Benefit Recipients Reach 700,000... Approaching Record High of 759,000
Ministry of Employment: "Preparing System Improvement Plan through Employment Insurance Reform TF"

Kim Young-jung, Director General of Employment Policy, Ministry of Employment and Labor. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] Last month, the number of employment insurance subscribers increased by 443,000 compared to the same month a year ago. In April, the increase exceeded 400,000 for the first time in 1 year and 4 months since December 2019, when it rose by 428,000, and it has remained above 400,000 for two consecutive months. The number of unemployment benefit recipients last month was 704,000. As the number of employment insurance subscribers and unemployment benefit recipients increased, concerns about the financial health of the employment insurance fund have grown, and the government stated that it is "preparing measures to stabilize the system."

According to the 'May Labor Market Trends Based on Employment Administration Statistics' announced by the Ministry of Employment and Labor on the 7th, the number of employment insurance subscribers last month was 14,264,000, an increase of 443,000 compared to the same month a year ago. The number of employment insurance subscribers has steadily increased with 169,000 in January, 192,000 in February, 324,000 in March, and 443,000 in April this year.

The increase in employment insurance subscribers last month was led by the service industry, which grew by 357,000. Significant increases were seen in health and welfare (115,000), publishing, telecommunications, and information (55,000), and professional scientific and technical services (55,000). Business services such as facility management and security increased by 10,000 for the second consecutive month following April. Although it was negative throughout last year, it has shown an increasing trend for two consecutive months since April. Among service industries, accommodation and food services, which were hit hardest by COVID-19, decreased by 12,000. The decline has been ongoing this year with -54,000 in January, -59,000 in February, -34,000 in March, -15,000 in April, and -12,000 in May.

The number of employment insurance subscribers in manufacturing also increased by 58,000 due to favorable exports. The increase in manufacturing employment insurance subscribers has been growing with 5,000 in January, 22,000 in February, 34,000 in March, 44,000 in April, and 58,000 last month. By age group, all age groups except those in their 30s (-13,000) showed an increasing trend. However, regarding the sharp increase in subscribers aged 60 and over (211,000) and the decrease in those in their 30s, the Ministry of Employment and Labor repeated its previous explanation that this is due to the "population decline effect in the 30s."

The number of unemployment benefit (job-seeking allowance) recipients last month was 704,000, slightly down from the record highs of 759,000 in March and 739,000 in April. The amount paid in unemployment benefits was 1.0778 trillion won. It has remained in the trillion-won range for four consecutive months since February. Kim Youngjoong, Director of Employment Policy at the Ministry of Employment and Labor, explained, "Due to the nature of the fund, payments are made over 4 to 9 months rather than one month, so the surge at the end of last year is reflected in the current performance."

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