No. of young part-time workers reaches all-time high

The number of part-time workers in their teens and 20s reached an all-time high of 440,000 last year, indicating the quality of youth employment deteriorated amid the prolonged sluggish job market. Those employed on an hourly-basis receive low wages and are mostly engaged in simple manual labor in restaurants, convenience stores and other services businesses.

According to Statistics Korea and the Ministry of Employment and Labor Sunday, 439,000 people aged 15-29 were hired on a part-time basis as of 2011, up from 418,000 a year earlier. In 2003, only 302,000 worked part-time in that age group.

The figure has increased over the years, meaning that a growing number of high school and university graduates are facing difficulty in finding “decent” full-time jobs that offer high salaries and generous benefits. Additionally, more students are forced to get part-time jobs to pay for surging tuition and living costs.

“Many young people struggle to find full-time work as companies do not offer as many regular positions with handsome paychecks and benefits as they used to amid sluggish business conditions at home and abroad,” a Statistics Korea official said.

In February, the jobless rate for those aged 15 to 29 came to 8.3 percent, rising for the fourth consecutive month since November when it stood at 6.8 percent.

“Young jobseekers are increasingly forced to take low-paying part-time jobs in restaurants and other retail outlets,” the official said.

What they learned at school is useless if they are engaged in low-paying, manual jobs in the service sector,” the official said.

Statistics Korea said part-timers accounted for 12 percent of the total salaried workers aged 15-29 in 2011, up from 11.5 percent in 2010 and 11 percent in 2009. In 2003, only 7.3 percent of young workers were employed on an hourly-basis.

It was also found that 67 percent of part-timers, or 293,000, were either university students or collegians who took a leave of absence last year, up from 52.8 percent in 2005.

“A growing number of university students are also pressed to get part-time jobs at coffee shops, restaurants, convenience stores and other retail stores to pay for soaring tuition and rising cost of living,” the official said. “The problem is that they are severely underpaid, compared to full-time employees.”

In 2011, young part-timers at non-alcoholic beverage shops received only 41.5 percent of the average salary paid to regular workers in the wholesale and retail sector, according to Statistics Korea. Those at convenience stores only received 49.3 percent. <Korea Times/Lee Hyo-sik>

news@theasian.asia