Introduction: A Decade of Declining Youth Workforce Participation in South Korea
South Korea, long celebrated for its rapid economic growth and highly educated population, is now facing a mounting crisis: a growing number of young people are choosing not to participate in the workforce. According to a recent report by the state-run Korea Labor Institute, the willingness of young, unmarried South Koreans living with their parents to seek employment has steadily declined over the past decade. This trend, which has significant implications for the country’s economy and society, is driven by a complex mix of economic, social, and psychological factors.
The report, released in June 2024, analyzes data from 2015 to 2024 and focuses on individuals aged 19 to 39 who are not actively seeking employment. The findings are stark: in 2015, 56.1 percent of economically inactive youth living at home expressed a willingness to work. By 2024, that figure had dropped to 50 percent. Even more concerning, nearly 2.73 million young Koreans—about 77 percent of the economically inactive youth population—reported no intention to find a job at all.
Understanding Economic Inactivity: Who Are the Inactive Youth?
In South Korea, the term “economically inactive youth” refers to young people who are neither working nor actively seeking employment. This group includes those who are resting, pursuing further education, caring for family, or simply disengaged from the labor market for other reasons. The Korea Labor Institute’s report highlights that the number of young people who are willing to work but believe they have no chance of getting a job has surged from just over 5,000 in 2015 to 175,000 in 2024. At the same time, those who felt they had job opportunities plummeted from nearly 80,000 to under 15,000.
About 20 percent of the economically inactive youth say they are willing to work but have not engaged in any job search activities in the past four weeks. The percentage of those who said they would be able to work if offered a job dropped sharply from 54 percent in 2015 to 31 percent in 2024. The COVID-19 pandemic is cited as a major factor in this decline, but the roots of the problem run much deeper.
Why Are Young Koreans Opting Out?
The reasons behind this trend are multifaceted. The Korea Labor Institute identifies three main factors: resting, education, and child care. Over the past decade, the share of young people engaged in child care has dropped from 26.8 percent to 13.8 percent, while those categorized as “resting”—a euphemism for taking a break from work or study—has doubled from 10.5 percent to 20 percent. The proportion of those attending school has remained relatively stable.
Personal stories, such as that of Yoon, a 22-year-old former music student who spent five years isolated at home, shed light on the psychological and social pressures facing young Koreans. Yoon’s experience of burnout, parental expectations, and mental health struggles is increasingly common among her peers. Many young people, after facing repeated job rejections and intense competition, withdraw from the labor market altogether.
Lee Yeon-jin, a professor of sociology at Kookmin University, explains:
“Today’s youth think fundamentally differently from previous generations. Our society has failed to truly understand young people, who are increasingly reluctant to pursue traditional paths of employment and marriage.”
Heo Su-jin, a youth policy expert at the Ministry of Economy and Finance, warns that this trend could have serious consequences for the national economy:
“In this era of ultra-low birth rates, this trend could diminish the labor supply, potentially hampering national economic growth.”
The Role of Education and Labor Market Mismatch
South Korea boasts one of the highest rates of tertiary education among OECD countries, with 77 percent of women and 63 percent of men aged 25 to 34 holding a university degree. Yet, paradoxically, the youth employment rate remains well below the OECD average. This is partly due to a phenomenon known as “education inflation” or “credentialism,” where ever-higher qualifications are required for jobs that previously needed less education.
The mismatch between education and labor market needs is acute. Many young Koreans invest years in university and job preparation, only to find that their skills do not align with available positions—especially in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which account for 83 percent of job openings but offer lower wages and fewer benefits than large corporations. As a result, many young people prefer to remain unemployed or economically inactive rather than accept jobs they perceive as beneath their qualifications.
The Korea Economic Institute of America describes this as the “Golden Ticket Syndrome”:
“Young people prioritize university education despite the low financial returns. The competition for top universities, which typically involves study at private education institutions, imposes a heavy financial burden on families and pressure on students.”
This intense focus on academic achievement and prestigious employment has led to a situation where nearly half of university graduates are overqualified for their jobs, and many spend months or even years searching for suitable employment. The result is a growing pool of highly educated but economically inactive young people.
Demographic and Gender Dimensions
While more men than women are economically inactive overall, the proportion of inactive women has steadily increased over the past decade. Among young people aged 15 to 24, the share of inactive women rose from 40 percent in 2015 to 42.3 percent in 2024. For those aged 25 to 34, the figure increased from 35 percent to 40.9 percent. The OECD notes that, despite higher educational attainment, young Korean women have lower employment rates than their male peers—76 percent versus 83 percent for those with university degrees.
In terms of education, the percentage of college graduates not looking for work increased from 19.4 percent in 2015 to 23.7 percent in 2024 among younger people, and from 54.3 percent to 58.8 percent among older individuals. This suggests that the problem of economic inactivity is not limited to those with less education; in fact, it is particularly pronounced among the highly educated.
Economic and Social Consequences
The rise in youth economic inactivity has far-reaching implications. For individuals, prolonged periods of inactivity can lead to skill erosion, lower lifetime earnings, and increased risk of social isolation and mental health issues. For society, the trend threatens to exacerbate labor shortages, reduce economic growth, and strain the social safety net—especially as South Korea faces rapid population aging and ultra-low birth rates.
Recent data from Statistics Korea shows that the number of unemployed or economically inactive young people reached 1.21 million in early 2025, an increase of 70,000 from the previous year. Among them, 504,000 reported that they were “just resting,” the highest level since data collection began in 2003. Even among those who are employed, many are in short-term or part-time positions, with one in four young workers classified as underemployed.
Experts attribute these trends to sluggish economic growth, weak domestic demand, and a labor market that favors experienced hires over fresh graduates. The dual structure of the labor market—divided between secure, well-paid jobs in large firms and precarious, low-wage positions in SMEs—further discourages young people from entering the workforce.
Government and Community Responses
The South Korean government has launched a range of initiatives to address youth economic inactivity. These include the Youth Employment All-Care Platform, which offers job placement and counseling services, and the National Employment Support System, which provides financial assistance and bonuses for those who secure employment. The Youth Challenge Support Program collaborates with local youth centers to offer job coaching, mental healthcare, and personal development workshops.
However, these programs face challenges in reaching the most isolated and vulnerable young people. Non-governmental organizations, such as the social enterprise Seed:s, have stepped in to fill the gaps, offering free programs and basic financial support to help young people reintegrate into society.
Professor Kim Dae-jong of Sejong University emphasizes the importance of early intervention:
“Students from middle school through university need access to volunteer opportunities and emotional development programs to become well-adjusted adults.”
He also calls for structural reforms to create more quality jobs, such as reducing corporate taxes to attract international companies and expanding vocational education and training.
International Perspective and Policy Recommendations
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has highlighted South Korea’s youth employment challenges in several reports. The OECD recommends improving career guidance and counseling, expanding vocational education and apprenticeships, and incentivizing tertiary institutions to offer more labor-market relevant degrees. It also calls for reforms to break down the dual structure of the labor market and expand the social safety net for young people.
One successful innovation has been the introduction of Meister high schools, which combine education with work experience and have achieved employment rates of over 90 percent for graduates. However, only a small fraction of students attend these schools or participate in apprenticeship programs, suggesting that more needs to be done to make vocational pathways attractive and accessible.
Ultimately, addressing youth economic inactivity in South Korea will require a comprehensive approach that tackles educational, economic, and social barriers. This includes not only creating more and better jobs, but also supporting young people’s mental health, reducing the stigma associated with non-traditional career paths, and fostering a more inclusive and flexible labor market.
In Summary
- South Korea is experiencing a significant rise in youth economic inactivity, with fewer young people expressing a desire to work.
- The trend is driven by a combination of labor market mismatch, education inflation, psychological pressures, and a lack of quality job opportunities.
- Women and highly educated individuals are increasingly represented among the economically inactive.
- Prolonged inactivity has negative consequences for individuals and the broader economy, especially as the country faces rapid aging and low birth rates.
- Government and community programs offer support, but more comprehensive reforms are needed to address the root causes of youth disengagement from the workforce.
- International best practices suggest expanding vocational education, improving career guidance, and reforming labor market structures to better match young people’s skills with available jobs.
