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The results of the First Half of 2026 Labor Force Survey by Occupation released by the Ministry of Employment and Labor on the 30th, indicating a tighter job market ahead for the second half of the year with a projected drop of 9,000 in corporate recruitment plans. / Courtesy of the Ministry of Employment and Labor

Amid heightening uncertainties such as conflicts in the Middle East and high oil prices, South Korean companies have scaled back their recruitment plans for the second and third quarters of this year compared to the same period last year.

According to the First Half of 2026 Labor Force Survey by Occupation released by the Ministry of Employment and Labor on the 30th, the projected recruitment headcount for businesses from the second quarter through the third quarter stands at 460,000. This marks a decrease of 9,000 openings (-1.8%) compared to the same period last year and represents the lowest level since the first half of 2021 (425,000 openings) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

By company size, the unfilled vacancy rate for businesses with fewer than 300 employees fell by 1.1 percentage points year-on-year to 6.6%. For enterprises with 300 or more employees, the unfilled vacancy rate dropped by 1.4 percentage points over the same period to 6.1%. Large enterprises with 300 or more employees reported a labor shortage of 46,000 individuals, down by 2,000 (-5.0%), while their planned recruitment openings also shrank by 4,000 (-7.0%) to 48,000, signaling a distinct slowdown in hiring demand among major corporations.

When asked about the reasons for these unfilled vacancies, a majority of businesses cited a lack of applicants with the required professional experience (25.8%). Other reasons included a shortage of applicants possessing the educational background or qualifications demanded by the company (18.5%), and a mismatch between the company's working conditions, such as salary levels, and job seekers' expectations (18.1%).

Meanwhile, the number of unfilled vacancies accumulated up to the first quarter of this year stood at 96,000, dropping by 13,000 (-11.8%) compared to the same period last year. Unfilled vacancies refer to positions that remained open despite active hiring efforts by employers. This marks the first time since 2021 that the unfilled vacancy figure has fallen below the 100,000 threshold.

Since 2021, the Ministry of Employment and Labor has conducted this survey twice a year, during the first and second halves, tracking job openings and hiring trends across various industries and occupations among approximately 72,000 businesses with one or more employees.

                                                                                                            Kim Bo-young