Delivery workers ride motorbikes on a street in Seoul, in this file photo taken June 28, 2022. (Yonhap)
SEJONG, Oct. 18 (Korea Bizwire) — The number of employees in the delivery industry increased on-year in the first half of 2022, data showed Tuesday, amid growing demand for such services due to the prolonged pandemic.
The couriers and messengers industry hired 311,000 people in the January-June period, up 52,000 from a year earlier, according to Statistics Korea. The total number of employees in the country was estimated at around 28 million.
The increase apparently came as more people ordered food and other daily necessities amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The number of people working at non-residential welfare facilities also increased 133,000 to reach 1.38 million, the data showed.
In contrast, workers in the food service sector fell 46,000 to 1.56 million. The banking sector also hired 22,000 fewer people, with its number of employees reaching 226,000, the data added.
The portion of workers earning monthly wages between 2 million won (US$1,402) and 3 million won, meanwhile, came to 35.1 percent in the first half, up 1.8 percentage points from a year earlier.
Those making between 1 million won and 2 million won, on the other hand, declined 3.9 percentage points to 15.9 percent.
South Korea added jobs for the 19th straight month in September, rising 707,000 from a year earlier. The finance ministry, however, said inflation, rate hikes and slowed exports will likely weigh down the job market down the road.
The country’s jobless rate fell 0.3 percentage point on-year to 2.4 percent in September, the lowest for any September since 1999.
(Yonhap)
