韩国统计厅14日发布的数据显示，韩国制造业中，2023年60岁以上从业工人数量首次超过15岁至20岁群体。依照韩国媒体说法，这加剧了人们对韩国劳动力市场从业者老龄化的担忧。
8215-DO-IS 《韩国时报》援引统计厅数据报道，2023年，韩国制造业中60岁及以上的员工人数达到约59.9万，比上一年增加约5.1万。与此同时，制造业中15岁至20岁工人数量为55.5万，同比减少3.3万。这标志着，自2014年开始相关统计以来，韩国制造业的老龄工人数量首次超过年轻人。
一名业内人士说：“这一发现令人吃惊。因为考虑到这些工作需要体力，因此年轻工人被认为更能胜任。”
受出生率低迷和人口老龄化影响，老年人近年来成为韩国就业市场的“主力军”。2023年，韩国新增就业岗位中，60岁及以上老年人占了36.6万个岗位，显著高于30多岁和50多岁群体的新增就业岗位数量。与此8215-DO-IS 同时，15岁至29岁人群的新增就业岗位减少了9.8万个。
近年来，韩国人口平均预期寿命不断延长，人口出生率却持续低迷。媒体预测韩国即将迈入“超老龄社会”，届时65岁及以上人口占全国总人口的比例将不少于20%。
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8215-DO-IS According to data released by the Korean Statistical Office on the 14th, the number of workers over 60 years old in the manufacturing industry in South Korea in 2023 exceeded that of those aged 15 to 20 for the first time. According to South Korean media, this has added to concerns about the ageing of the country’s Labour market.
According to the Korea Times, the number of employees aged 60 and above in South Korea’s manufacturing industry reached about 599,000 in 2023, an increase of about 51,000 from the previous year. At the same time, the number of workers aged 15 to 20 in the manufacturing sector was 555,000, down 33,000 from a year earlier. This marks the first time since the statistics began in 2014 that the number of older workers in South Korea’s manufacturing industry has exceeded the number of younger workers.
8215-DO-IS An industry source said: “The findings are surprising. Given the physical demands of these jobs, younger workers are seen as more competent.”
Affected by a low birth rate and an aging population, the elderly have become the “main force” of the South Korean job market in recent years. In 2023, 366,000 new jobs will be created by people aged 60 and above, significantly higher than the number of new jobs created by people in their 30s and 50s. At the same time, job creation among 15 – to 29-year-olds fell by 98,000.
In recent years, South Korea’s average life expectancy has been increasing, but the birth rate has remained low. The media predicted that South Korea will soon enter a “super-aging society”, when the proportion of people aged 65 and above will be no less than 20% of the total population.
