The number of employed people aged 15 or higher totaled 28,698,000 in September, up 309,000 from the same month of last year, according to Statistics Korea. It kept rising for the 31st consecutive month since March 2021.

The September job growth was higher than an increase of 211,000 in July and 268,000 in August, but it stayed low compared to the expansion of 469,000 in March, 354,000 in April, 351,000 in May and 333,000 in June.

The employment remained sluggish as uncertainties mounted over the economy due to the manufacturing export fall and the higher interest rates leading to the housing market downturn.

The number of jobs among manufacturers diminished 72,000 in September from a year earlier, keeping a downward trend for the ninth successive month.

Jobs in the construction sector gained 36,000 last month, marking the first rebound in 10 months, but the number in the real estate segment declined 36,000.

Employment in the health and social welfare services and the lodging and eatery sectors grew 118,000 and 66,000 respectively.

The overall job growth was led by the elderly people. Except the employment among those aged 60 or higher, last month’s jobs reduced compared to the same month of last year.

The number of jobs for those aged 60 or older increased 354,000 in September from a year earlier, but the figures for those in their 20s and 40s dwindled 86,000 and 58,000 each.

The number of regular employees climbed 435,000, but the readings for irregular workers and daily laborers shrank 31,000 and 67,000 last month.

The number of the self-employed who hired workers expanded 39,000, but the figure for the self-employed without employees reduced 20,000.

Employment rate for those aged 15 or higher rose 0.5 percentage points over the year to 63.2 percent in September, while the OECD-method hiring rate for those aged 15-64 went up 0.7 percentage points to 69.6 percent.

The number of unemployed people came in at 661,000 in September, down 42,000 from a year earlier. Jobless rate slipped 0.1 percentage point to 2.3 percent.

The expanded jobless rate went down 1.4 percentage points to 8.5 percent last month, and the corresponding rate for those aged 15-29 slumped 2.1 percentage points to 16.3 percent.

The official unemployment rate gauges those who are immediately available for work but failed to get a job for the past four weeks despite efforts to seek a job actively.

The expanded jobless rate, called labor underutilization indicator, adds those who are discouraged from searching for a job, those who work part-time against their will to work full-time, and those who prepare to get a job after college graduation, to the official unemployment rate.

The economically inactive population, who had no willingness to seek a job and remained unemployed, fell 120,000 over the year to 16,071,000 in September.

The reading for discouraged jobseekers diminished 45,000 to 380,000 last month.

The number of the “take-a-rest” group, who replied that they took a rest during a job survey period, added 11,000 to 2,248,000.

The take-a-rest group is considered important as it can include those who are too discouraged to seek a job for an extended period.