Increase in Employment Insurance Subscribers Falls Below 300,000 Again

March Labor Market Trends
Smallest Increase in 4 Years

The increase in the number of employment insurance subscribers continued to slow down, with last month's increase falling below 300,000 again.

According to the 'Labor Market Trends' announced by the Ministry of Employment and Labor on the 8th, as of the end of last month, the number of regular employment insurance subscribers was 15,281,000, an increase of 1.8% compared to 272,000 in the same month last year.

The increase in subscribers slightly decreased compared to the previous month, with 341,000 in January, 312,000 in February, and 272,000 in March. The increase in subscribers in March was the lowest in four years since March 2020 (253,000).

Among the increased subscribers, 76,000 were foreign workers who entered Korea under the Employment Permit System, such as non-professional employment visa (E-9) and visiting employment visa (H-2). In particular, 89.6% of foreign workers under the Employment Permit System (E9, H2) were concentrated in manufacturing.

Excluding the increase in foreign subscribers (76,000), the increase in domestic subscribers was 195,000.

By industry, the number of subscribers in manufacturing increased by 54,000 to 3,841,000 compared to last year. However, excluding foreign workers under the Employment Permit System, it decreased by 13,000.

Within manufacturing, most sectors continued to increase, including metal processing (12,000), food products (11,000), other transportation equipment (10,000), and automobiles (6,000), while electronics and telecommunications (-1,000) and textile products (-4,000) decreased.

The number of subscribers in the service industry was 10,518,000, an increase of 217,000 compared to one year ago. Health and welfare (121,000), business services (31,000), accommodation and food services (27,000), and transportation and warehousing (15,000) continued to increase, but the increase in professional scientific services (18,000) slowed down.

Concerns are rising that the Employment Insurance Fund's finances may be depleted. On the 6th, the Seoul Employment Welfare Plus Center in Jung-gu, Seoul. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

Looking at the total employment insurance subscribers by age group, the 30s (48,000), 50s (116,000), and 60 and above (207,000) increased, while those under 29 (-77,000) and in their 40s (-23,000) decreased.

The under 29 age group was most affected by population decline, decreasing in retail (-19,000), information and communications (-18,000), and health and welfare (-11,000). The 40s also decreased in construction (-13,000), retail (-5,000), real estate (-5,000), and shifted to a decrease in manufacturing (-3,000) and educational services (-3,000).

The number of applicants for job-seeking benefits (unemployment benefits) paid from the employment insurance fund to support unemployed job seekers was 131,000, a decrease of 13,000 compared to the same month last year.

Most industries decreased, including educational services (-28,000), manufacturing (-26,000), retail (-17,000), and health and welfare (-16,000), but financial insurance (3,000) and information and communications (1,000) increased.

During the same period, the amount paid for job-seeking benefits was 969.6 billion won, down 63.8 billion won (6.2%). The number of recipients decreased by 20,000 (-3.0%) to 655,000.

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