<Anchor> This is a
friendly economic time. Today (29th), I will be with reporter Kim Hye-min. Reporter Kim, it seems that there have been quite a few movements to reduce the number of non-regular workers since the beginning of this administration.
<Reporter> The
number of non-regular workers recorded the highest this year. According to a recent report by the National Statistical Office, the number exceeded 8.06 million as of last August. Among them, there is a generation with a particularly high proportion of non-regular workers.
It's people over the age of 60. The government believes that 'aging' is the biggest cause. An increasing number of people in their 50s, who were regular workers, are looking for short-term jobs after they retire.
There may be reasons for the aging population, but in fact, government policies have had a major impact. The government has created a public job project to boost the employment rate over the past few years, and a large number of older people have been hired here.
Of the 640,000 non-regular workers that increased this year, 228,000 were workers in the health and social welfare services sectors, which are greatly affected by the government's job opportunities for the elderly.
<Anchor>
So, it is not that the employment rate in the private sector has increased, but the number of non-regular jobs created by the government through taxation has increased. This is the story. I'm a little worried about my 20's too. What is the situation in your 20s?
<Reporter>
40% of those in their 20s who are currently working are non-regular workers, which is about 4 out of 10. In your 20s, there are times when you work part-time for a while before getting a job.
So at this time, you might be thinking that the ratio of non-regular workers was originally high, but five years ago, in 2016, only 32% of non-regular workers in their 20s were.
Compared with other generations, those in their 30s, 40s, and 50s increased by 1 to 2 percentage points, while those in their 20s increased by 7.8 percentage points.
The reason why the number of non-regular workers in their 20s is increasing this way is different from the older people described above. The biggest reason is that the employment capacity of companies that will accept job seekers has deteriorated.
The economy is unstable due to COVID-19, and the industrial environment is changing rapidly, such as unmanned, automated, and telecommuting.
As a result of this, large corporations have recently abolished large-scale public recruitment one after another and only occasional hiring has increased.
<Anchor> In the
end, it seems that the employment situation in the private sector is still very bad for the employed. There is always a difference between non-regular workers and regular workers. But what if the gap is widening?
<Reporter> As
explained, the number of non-regular workers continues to increase, but their treatment is not getting better. If you compare the wages of non-regular workers with last year, in fact, it has increased.
I am receiving an average of 1,769,000 won a month, up 3.4%, but of course, the wages of regular workers have also increased. The monthly average exceeded 33,000 won.
The wage difference between regular and non-regular workers is about 1,567,000 won, which is the largest since 2003 when statistics began to be compiled.
In addition, the percentage of regular workers receiving bonuses was also higher than usual, but this gap is widening.
Also, among non-regular workers, about 35% have used or are able to use paid holidays, but 83% of regular workers, that is, more than 8 out of 10 workers.
<Anchor>
However, according to government announcements, the government has always shown a clear recovery in employment. You talk about these things a lot. But again, there seems to be a slight temperature difference from reality, always.
<Reporter> The
government has emphasized the recovery of employment several times over the years. President Moon Jae-in recently said that "employment has recovered to 99.8 percent of the pre-crisis level."
In addition, as the Ministry of Strategy and Finance issued an unusually separate explanatory data regarding this announcement by Statistics Korea, the number of non-regular workers increased, but major indicators of working conditions improved. claimed this.
As for the reason, the participation rate of employment insurance and health insurance has increased, and the number of respondents who 'voluntarily selected non-regular workers' increased slightly from last year. I've heard this rationale.
However, experts are concerned that it may be the result of internalizing the decline in working conditions due to the COVID-19 crisis.
Let's compare it to the situation abroad.
In the proportion of 'non-regular workers' compiled by the OECD, Korea ranked 8th among all member countries in 2017 alone.
But last year, it took second place, becoming the country with the second largest number of non-regular workers after Colombia.
It's time to reflect on whether the government's top priority, which has been promoting regularization of non-regular workers, has fallen into the paradox of regulation.