Korea's employment dilemma: Can older, younger workers really share job market?

Korea’s labor market is facing a generational clash as older workers seek longer careers and younger people struggle to find first jobs. Policymakers are preparing to gradually raise the statutory retirement age from 60 to 65, but the change has sparked concern about youth employment. The Bank of Korea and experts say retirement-age reform should be paired with more flexible pay and hiring systems. Labor Minister Kim Young-hoon said the trade-off is especially sharp at large companies and in the public sector.

The number of employed people aged 55 to 79 reached 10.13 million in May, surpassing 10 million for the first time since the annual survey began in 2005.

A survey by the Economic, Social and Labor Council found that 77 percent of 878 respondents wanted an employment system that could better accommodate both older and younger workers.

Average monthly pension benefits over the past year were 880,000 won, below the estimated 1.54 million won needed for basic living expenses for a single-person household.

The number of workers aged 29 and younger fell by 56,000 in August, extending a decline that has lasted 48 consecutive months.

The Bank of Korea said that from 2016 through 2024, an increase of one older worker was associated with a decline of 0.4 to 1.5 younger counterparts, with the effect stronger at unionized companies and large corporations.

Published Sep 10, 2026 7:00 am KST

Experts call for more flexible employment policies as retirement age increase raises concerns over youth hiring

Job seekers crowd a fair for older workers in Seoul's Mapo District, Dec. 13, 2023. Yonhap

Korea’s labor market is caught in a generational dilemma. Young people continue to struggle to land their first jobs, while older workers are hoping to stay on the payroll for longer, as pension income often falls short of what they need for retirement.

As the country rapidly ages, policymakers are pursuing a gradual increase in the statutory retirement age from 60 to 65. This prospect has raised a difficult question: Are older workers staying in the workforce at the expense of the younger generation’s first break?

A recent survey by the Economic, Social and Labor Council, a presidential advisory body, found that 77 percent of 878 respondents believed Korea needed an employment system that could better accommodate both older and younger workers.

But there is little consensus yet on what that would look like in practice. How can the country make room for two generations to coexist when their needs are increasingly colliding in the job market?

Job market pulling in opposite directions

The number of employed people aged 55 to 79 reached 10.13 million in May, surpassing 10 million for the first time since the annual survey began in 2005, according to the Ministry of Data and Statistics.

Among them is Kim Ki-doo. The 71-year-old works mornings at a dental laboratory, delivering products for three to four hours a day, six days a week.

“Financially, it’s been hard to have a secure retirement. And since my wife is still working, I’m in a position where I have to keep doing something too,” he said.

Yet Kim does not describe his job simply as a financial necessity, adding that he takes pride in being able to adapt to whatever task is assigned to him rather than sitting idle.

For people like Kim, inadequate pension income is one of the major reasons they remain in the workforce. The average monthly pension benefit over the past year was 880,000 won ($654), well below the estimated 1.54 million won needed to cover basic living expenses for a single-person household.

That continued attachment to work is reflected in employment insurance data. In August, the number of workers aged 60 and older covered by insurance rose by about 207,000 from a year earlier, accounting for nearly 75 percent of the total increase, according to the Ministry of Employment and Labor.

At the other end of the age spectrum, however, the picture was almost exactly the reverse. The number of workers aged 29 and younger fell by 56,000, extending a decline that has now lasted 48 consecutive months.

In fact, they were the only age group in the data to see a decline, with employment decreasing across a broad range of industries, including service, manufacturing, information and communications, health and social welfare.

That widening gap is fueling concern that raising the retirement age could make it even harder for young people to get onto the already precarious career ladder.

Son Ga-hyun, 27, who recently found a job after two years of job hunting and part-time work, said keeping older workers longer could inevitably narrow opportunities for younger hires. The two groups may not be competing for the same jobs, but employers still have to weigh labor costs.

“Companies are trying to achieve the highest efficiency with the fewest people possible,” Son said. “Even if employers cut older workers’ pay to make room for new hires, there would be limits to how much they could save — particularly as more young people struggle to find work and rely on their parents, while older workers continue to shoulder family expenses.”

Faced with the cost of hiring inexperienced graduates or bringing in experienced workers at higher salaries, employers may ultimately find it more economical to keep their existing workforce in place, she argued.

The Bank of Korea (BOK) found that from 2016, when the statutory retirement age was raised to 60, through 2024, an increase of one older worker was associated with a decline of 0.4 to 1.5 younger counterparts. This effect was more pronounced at unionized companies and large corporations.

“Simply extending the retirement age while leaving seniority-based pay systems and rigid employment practices intact could lead to unintended side effects, such as a contraction in youth employment,” the central bank said in a report.

One alternative raised by the BOK is a “rehiring after retirement” system, already adopted by countries like Japan, which became a super-aged society earlier than Korea.

Under the system, workers formally retire at the statutory age and then return under a new employment contract. The bank argued that greater flexibility in setting wages could give companies a stronger incentive to retain both experienced workers and young hires.

Experts likewise stressed the need for more flexible employment policies. “Seniority-based pay and employment protections may be seen as fair and necessary by incumbent workers in permanent positions, but extending the retirement age without changing those structures could leave young people waiting even longer to enter the labor market,” said Kim Duk-ho, a professor with Sungkyunkwan University’s RISE project and a former standing member of the Economic, Social and Labor Council.

He added that, difficult as it may be, retirement age reform should go hand in hand with changes to the wage system, more flexible employment arrangements and support for career transitions, as well as pension reform.

The labor ministry plans to submit legislation later this year to gradually raise the statutory retirement age, while simultaneously pursuing measures aimed at increasing youth hiring.

Labor Minister Kim Young-hoon said the trade-off was particularly acute at large companies and in the public sector, where jobs are highly sought after by young people. Those positions account for about 20 percent of the total, he said.

“At least for these coveted jobs, we need to reach a grand bargain that allows both generations to benefit,” he noted.

Why is it getting harder for young people to land jobs?

No retirement? Why more Koreans work into their 70s

韩国劳动力市场正面临代际冲突：年长劳动者寻求更长的职业生涯，而年轻人却难以找到第一份工作。政策制定者正准备逐步将法定退休年龄从60岁提高到65岁，但这一变化引发了人们对青年就业的担忧。韩国央行和专家表示，退休年龄改革应与更加灵活的薪酬和雇佣制度相结合。劳动部长金英勋指出，这种权衡在大公司和公共部门尤为突出。

5月份，55岁至79岁就业人数达到1013万人，这是自2005年开始进行年度调查以来首次超过1000万人。

经济、社会和劳工委员会的一项调查发现，在 878 名受访者中，77% 的人希望建立一个能够更好地兼顾老年和年轻劳动者的就业体系。

过去一年的平均每月养老金为 88 万韩元，低于单身家庭基本生活开支所需的约 154 万韩元。

8 月份，29 岁及以下劳动者的人数减少了 5.6 万人，延续了连续 48 个月的下降趋势。

韩国银行表示，从 2016 年到 2024 年，每增加一名老年员工，就会减少 0.4 到 1.5 名年轻员工，而且这种影响在工会企业和大型企业中更为显著。

发布于2026年9月10日 上午7:00（韩国标准时间）

专家呼吁制定更灵活的就业政策，因为退休年龄的提高引发了人们对青年就业的担忧。

2023年12月13日，求职者挤满了首尔麻浦区一场面向老年人的招聘会。（韩联社）

韩国劳动力市场正面临代际困境。年轻人仍在为找到第一份工作而苦苦挣扎，而年长的劳动者则希望延长工作年限，因为养老金收入往往不足以维持他们的退休生活。

随着国家人口迅速老龄化，政策制定者正在逐步将法定退休年龄从 60 岁提高到 65 岁。这一前景引发了一个棘手的问题：老年劳动者继续留在劳动力市场是否会以牺牲年轻一代的首次休息为代价？

总统顾问机构经济社会劳动委员会最近的一项调查发现，在 878 名受访者中，77% 的人认为韩国需要一个能够更好地兼顾老年和年轻劳动者的就业制度。

但目前对于这在实践中应该如何体现，还没有达成共识。当两代人在就业市场的需求日益冲突时，国家该如何为两代人共存创造空间？

就业市场呈现相反的趋势

据统计部统计，5月份55岁至79岁就业人数达到1013万人，这是自2005年开始进行年度调查以来首次超过1000万人。

其中一位是金基斗。这位71岁的老人每周六天，每天上午在一家牙科实验室工作，负责运送产品，工作时间为三到四个小时。

他说：“经济上，很难拥有安稳的退休生活。而且因为我妻子还在工作，所以我也必须继续做点什么。”

但金并不认为他的工作仅仅是出于经济需要，他还补充说，他为自己能够适应分配给他的任何任务而不是无所事事而感到自豪。

对于像金女士这样的人来说，养老金收入不足是他们继续工作的主要原因之一。过去一年，他们的平均月养老金为88万韩元（约合654美元），远低于单人家庭维持基本生活所需的约154万韩元。

这种对工作的持续投入也体现在就业保险数据中。据日本雇佣劳动省统计，8月份，60岁及以上参保人员数量较上年同期增加约20.7万人，占总增幅的近75%。

然而，在年龄谱的另一端，情况几乎完全相反。29岁及以下劳动者的人数减少了5.6万人，这一下降趋势已持续48个月。

事实上，他们是数据中唯一就业人数下降的年龄组，就业人数在包括服务业、制造业、信息和通信业、卫生和社会福利业在内的各个行业都出现了下降。

这种日益扩大的差距加剧了人们的担忧，即提高退休年龄可能会使年轻人更难进入本已岌岌可危的职业阶梯。

27岁的孙佳贤（音译）在经历了两年求职和兼职后，最近终于找到了一份工作。她表示，延长年长员工的雇佣期限，不可避免地会减少年轻人的就业机会。虽然这两个群体可能并非在竞争同一份工作，但雇主仍然需要权衡劳动力成本。

孙先生说：“企业都在努力用尽可能少的人实现最高的效率。即使雇主为了招聘新员工而削减老员工的工资，他们能节省的金额也是有限的——尤其是在越来越多的年轻人难以找到工作、依赖父母，而老员工却继续承担家庭开支的情况下。”

她认为，考虑到雇用缺乏经验的毕业生或以更高薪水引进经验丰富的员工的成本，雇主最终可能会发现，保留现有员工更经济。

韩国银行（BOK）发现，从2016年法定退休年龄提高到60岁，到2024年期间，每增加一名老年员工，就会减少0.4到1.5名年轻员工。这种影响在工会企业和大型企业中更为显著。

央行在一份报告中表示：“仅仅延长退休年龄，而保留基于资历的薪酬制度和僵化的雇佣做法，可能会导致意想不到的副作用，例如青年就业率下降。”

韩国央行提出的一个替代方案是“退休后重新雇用”制度，日本等国家已经采用了这种制度，而日本成为超老龄化社会的时间比韩国更早。

根据该制度，员工达到法定退休年龄后正式退休，然后根据新的劳动合同重新入职。该银行认为，在工资设定方面更大的灵活性可以激励企业留住经验丰富的员工和年轻员工。

专家们同样强调了制定更灵活的就业政策的必要性。成均馆大学RISE项目教授、前经济社会劳动委员会常务委员金德浩表示：“对于正式员工而言，基于资历的薪酬和就业保障或许是公平且必要的，但如果在不改变这些制度的情况下延长退休年龄，可能会让年轻人更长时间才能进入劳动力市场。”

他还补充说，尽管退休年龄改革可能很困难，但应该与工资制度改革、更灵活的就业安排和对职业转型的支持以及养老金改革齐头并进。

劳动部计划于今年晚些时候提交立法，逐步提高法定退休年龄，同时采取措施增加青年就业。

劳动部长金英勋表示，这种权衡在大公司和公共部门尤为突出，因为这些部门的工作非常受年轻人欢迎。他说，这些职位约占总职位数的20%。

他指出：“至少对于这些令人垂涎的工作岗位，我们需要达成一项让两代人都能受益的重大协议。”

为什么年轻人找工作越来越难？

没有退休保障？为什么更多韩国人工作到70多岁？