'코로나 충격' 8월 취업자 27.4만명↓…6개월 연속 감소
Another brutal job report,… showing the damage that the COVID-19 pandemic is wreaking on South Korea's labor market.
The country has seen 6 straight months of declining on-year job figures.
Eum Ji-young breaks down the digits.
For six months in a row, the monthly job figures in South Korea have been worse than they were the previous year.
This is the first time there have been six months of consecutive worsening on-year job figures since the aftermath of the global financial crisis in 2009.
According to data from Statistics Korea on Wednesday, roughly 27 million people were in employment in August, but that figure is down 274-thousand from the same period last year.
Even though the situation is grim, the pace of the on-year job decrease is slowing when compared to the previous four months.
However, last month's figures do not reflect the impact of strengthened social distancing measures in the capital and surrounding area.
"The report is comprised of figures surveyed between August 9th and 15th. It does not take into account the recent surge in infections after the mass rally on Independence Day. That is likely to be reflected in the next month's report."
The number of unemployed was 864-thousand last month,... up six-thousand on-year. The unemployment rate in August was three-point-one percent.
The largest job losses were seen in the wholesale and retail industry,... which saw a decrease of 176-thousand jobs last month, or about a 5 percent fall on-year.
Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said at a ministerial meeting on Wednesday that he feels concerned because the additional shock due to the resurgence of the coronavirus will be reflected in the next month's report.
He added that part of the fourth COVID-19 extra budget will be used to help companies keep people in work, boost hiring, strengthen the employment safety net and create 575-thousand new jobs.
Eum Ji-young Arirang News.
