2023 Wage Worker Income Growth Rate 'Lowest Ever' at 2.7%

Average Incomes Highest in Finance, Insurance, and Electricity and Gas Supply Sectors

The income growth rate for wage workers' jobs in 2023 remained at a record low of 2.7%. This was due to a decline in bonuses from large corporations compared to previous years, as export amounts contracted that year.

Job seekers participating in the '2025 Public Institution Recruitment Information Fair' held last month at aT Center in Seocho-gu, Seoul, are lining up to enter the fair venue.

According to the "2023 Wage Worker Job Income (Compensation) Results" released by Statistics Korea on the 25th, the average income of workers in wage jobs in December 2023 was 3.63 million KRW, an increase of 2.7% (100,000 KRW) compared to the previous year. This is the smallest increase since related statistics began in 2017. The median income was 2.78 million KRW, up 4.1% (110,000 KRW) from the previous year.

A Statistics Korea official explained, "Income in large corporation jobs in 2023 remained flat compared to the previous year, which had an impact." He added, "Exports decreased by 7.5% in 2023, turning special payments and bonuses in large corporations negative. This caused income to rise only slightly."

By industry, the average income was high in finance and insurance (7.53 million KRW) and electricity and gas supply (6.75 million KRW), while accommodation and food service industries (1.81 million KRW), associations, organizations, and other personal services (2.23 million KRW) were low. Compared to the previous year, construction (5.6%) and accommodation and food service industries (5.2%), and business facility management (5.2%) showed notable increases, while international and foreign organizations (-1.0%), electricity and gas supply (-0.7%) decreased.

A Statistics Korea official explained, "Industries with a high proportion of large corporations, such as finance and insurance and electricity and gas supply, generally have high average incomes, but in 2023, they decreased compared to the previous year." He added, "Conversely, industries with many daily wage jobs saw income increases, as the minimum wage was raised by about 5% at that time, which also raised incomes."

The average income for men was 4.26 million KRW, 1.5 times that of women (2.79 million KRW). Compared to the previous year, men's income increased by 3.0% and women's by 2.8%, widening the gap. By age group, those in their 40s (4.51 million KRW), 50s (4.29 million KRW), and 30s (3.86 million KRW) had the highest average incomes. Compared to the previous year, those under 19 (5.0%), in their 50s (3.5%), and 40s (3.1%) showed notable growth.

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