Labour indicators levels - Regions — Employment in Korea

Korea: Labour indicators levels - Regions — Employment was 28.58 million Persons in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
28.58 million Persons
Change on year
up 0.6%
Rank
1st
of 2 groups
All-time high
28.58 million Persons
in 2024
All-time low
19.94 million Persons
in 1998
Years of data
27
1998–2024

Labour indicators levels - Regions — Employment in Korea, 1998–2024

010.0M20.0M30.0M1998201120241998: 19.9M Persons1999: 20.3M Persons2000: 21.2M Persons2001: 21.6M Persons2002: 22.2M Persons2003: 22.2M Persons2004: 22.7M Persons2005: 22.8M Persons2006: 23.2M Persons2007: 23.6M Persons2008: 23.8M Persons2009: 23.7M Persons2010: 24.0M Persons2011: 24.5M Persons2012: 25.0M Persons2013: 25.3M Persons2014: 25.9M Persons2015: 26.2M Persons2016: 26.4M Persons2017: 26.7M Persons2018: 26.8M Persons2019: 27.1M Persons2020: 26.9M Persons2021: 27.3M Persons2022: 28.1M Persons2023: 28.4M Persons2024: 28.6M Persons

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Persons.

Analysis

In 2024, labour indicators levels - regions — employment in Korea stood at 28.58 million Persons. That is the highest value across all 27 years on record.

That represents a change of up 0.6% on the previous year and up 10.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, labour indicators levels - regions — employment in Korea peaked at 28.58 million Persons in 2024 and was at its lowest, 19.94 million Persons, in 1998.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.

Labour indicators levels - Regions — Employment in Korea, year by year

Annual values for Labour indicators levels - Regions — Employment in Korea, 1998 to 2024.
Year Persons Change
1998 19.94 million Persons —
1999 20.29 million Persons +1.8%
2000 21.17 million Persons +4.4%
2001 21.61 million Persons +2.1%
2002 22.23 million Persons +2.9%
2003 22.22 million Persons -0.0%
2004 22.68 million Persons +2.1%
2005 22.83 million Persons +0.7%
2006 23.19 million Persons +1.6%
2007 23.56 million Persons +1.6%
2008 23.77 million Persons +0.9%
2009 23.69 million Persons -0.4%
2010 24.03 million Persons +1.5%
2011 24.53 million Persons +2.1%
2012 24.95 million Persons +1.7%
2013 25.30 million Persons +1.4%
2014 25.90 million Persons +2.4%
2015 26.18 million Persons +1.1%
2016 26.41 million Persons +0.9%
2017 26.72 million Persons +1.2%
2018 26.82 million Persons +0.4%
2019 27.12 million Persons +1.1%
2020 26.90 million Persons -0.8%
2021 27.27 million Persons +1.4%
2022 28.09 million Persons +3.0%
2023 28.42 million Persons +1.2%
2024 28.58 million Persons +0.6%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 20.11 million Persons 19.94 million Persons 20.29 million Persons 2
2000s 22.70 million Persons 21.17 million Persons 23.77 million Persons 10
2010s 25.80 million Persons 24.03 million Persons 27.12 million Persons 10
2020s 27.85 million Persons 26.90 million Persons 28.58 million Persons 5

Countries ranked near Korea

  1. 1 United States 162.91 million Persons compare
  2. 2 Brazil 95.88 million Persons compare
  3. 3 Russia 72.75 million Persons compare
  4. 4 Japan 67.81 million Persons compare

See the full ranking of 53 places →

More work & labour data for Korea

All data for Korea →

Frequently asked questions

What is labour indicators levels - regions — employment in Korea?
Labour indicators levels - regions — employment in Korea was 28.58 million Persons in 2024, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
What is the highest labour indicators levels - regions — employment recorded in Korea?
The highest recorded value was 28.58 million Persons in 2024.
What is the lowest labour indicators levels - regions — employment recorded in Korea?
The lowest recorded value was 19.94 million Persons in 1998.
How does Korea rank for labour indicators levels - regions — employment?
Korea ranks 1st out of 2 groups with data for 2024.
Is labour indicators levels - regions — employment rising or falling in Korea?
Over the last ten years it is up 10.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Korea data come from?
The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Labour indicators levels - Regions — Employment. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Labour indicators levels - Regions — Employment in Korea. Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 02 October 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/labour-indicators-levels-regions-employment/korea/

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About this data

Indicator
Labour indicators levels - Regions — Employment
Unit
Persons
Source
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence
OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
53 places, 1,321 data points, 1995–2025
Last refreshed

This dataset presents indicators on the size of the labour force, employment, and unemployment in large regions (TL2) and, where available, in small regions (TL3). Data definition and source The labour force status is presented by sex, for 15-64 year-olds and 15+ year-olds age ranges, the latter having less country coverage. Data is based on a labour force survey using ILO guidelines and collected from Eurostat (reg_lmk) for EU countries and via delegates of the OECD Working Party on Territorial Indicators (WPTI), as well as from national statistical offices' websites. Definition of regions Regions are subnational units below national boundaries. OECD countries have two regional levels: large regions (territorial level 2 or TL2) and small regions (territorial level 3 or TL3). For more information, see the OECD Territorial grid (pdf) and the OECD Territorial Correspondence Table (xlsx). Cite this dataset OECD Regions, Cities and Local Areas database http://oe.cd/geostats. Further information OECD Regions and Cities Statistical Atlas OECD Regions and Cities at a Glance For questions and/or comments, please email RegionStat@oecd.org.