Employment in industry, female (% of female employment) in Korea
Korea: Employment in industry, female (% of female employment) was 11.9% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Employment in industry, female (% of female employment) in Korea, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
The most recent figure for employment in industry, female (% of female employment) in Korea is 11.9%, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.2% on the previous year and down 13.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment in industry, female (% of female employment) in Korea peaked at 30.7% in 1991 and was at its lowest, 11.9%, in 2025.
That places Korea 70th out of 187 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Employment in industry, female (% of female employment) in Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 30.7% | — |
| 1992 | 29.0% | -5.7% |
| 1993 | 26.4% | -9.0% |
| 1994 | 25.2% | -4.5% |
| 1995 | 24.5% | -2.7% |
| 1996 | 23.5% | -3.9% |
| 1997 | 21.7% | -7.6% |
| 1998 | 19.2% | -11.7% |
| 1999 | 19.6% | +2.3% |
| 2000 | 19.8% | +0.9% |
| 2001 | 19.3% | -2.9% |
| 2002 | 18.9% | -1.7% |
| 2003 | 18.6% | -1.5% |
| 2004 | 17.8% | -4.3% |
| 2005 | 16.7% | -6.5% |
| 2006 | 16.1% | -3.4% |
| 2007 | 15.8% | -1.7% |
| 2008 | 15.4% | -2.9% |
| 2009 | 14.2% | -7.7% |
| 2010 | 14.8% | +4.2% |
| 2011 | 14.9% | +0.6% |
| 2012 | 14.5% | -2.5% |
| 2013 | 14.2% | -2.4% |
| 2014 | 14.3% | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 13.8% | -3.0% |
| 2016 | 13.4% | -3.3% |
| 2017 | 13.8% | +2.9% |
| 2018 | 13.5% | -1.6% |
| 2019 | 12.9% | -4.7% |
| 2020 | 12.9% | -0.1% |
| 2021 | 13.0% | +0.5% |
| 2022 | 12.9% | -0.4% |
| 2023 | 12.7% | -1.3% |
| 2024 | 12.2% | -4.1% |
| 2025 | 11.9% | -2.2% |
Korea compared with similar countries
- Korea's 11.9% is above the median for high income countries, which is 9.2%, 1.3× the median. (62 countries reporting)
- Korea's 11.9% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 9.9%, 1.2× the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 24.4% | 19.2% | 30.7% | 9 |
| 2000s | 17.3% | 14.2% | 19.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 14.0% | 12.9% | 14.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 12.6% | 11.9% | 13.0% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Korea
More work & labour data for Korea
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 16,840 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 63.91 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 29,824 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 2.96 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 0.78 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 97,052 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 65,686 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 62.02 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 0.9719 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate -0.1065 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment in industry, female (% of female employment) in Korea?
- Employment in industry, female (% of female employment) in Korea was 11.9% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest employment in industry, female (% of female employment) recorded in Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 30.7% in 1991.
- What is the lowest employment in industry, female (% of female employment) recorded in Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.9% in 2025.
- How does Korea rank for employment in industry, female (% of female employment)?
- Korea ranks 70th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is employment in industry, female (% of female employment) rising or falling in Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 13.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Korea data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Employment in industry, female (% of female employment) (modeled ILO estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Employment is defined as persons of working age who were engaged in any activity to produce goods or provide services for pay or profit, whether at work during the reference period or not at work due to temporary absence from a job, or to working-time arrangement. The industry sector consists of mining and quarrying, manufacturing, construction, and public utilities (electricity, gas, and water), in accordance with divisions 2-5 (ISIC 2) or categories C-F (ISIC 3) or categories B-F (ISIC 4).