Young Workers Disappearing: South Korea’s Job Market Shifts Away from 20-Somethings

The proportion of employees in their 20s at major South Korean companies has dropped over the past two years, data showed Wednesday, raising concerns about an aging workforce and narrowing job opportunities for young people, data showed Wednesday.

Recent data from corporate tracker CEO Score reveals a concerning trend in South Korea’s top firms. The share of employees in their 20s at 67 of the country’s leading 100 companies with published sustainability reports has declined from 24.8 percent in 2022 to 21 percent in 2023.

This shift translates to a significant reduction in the workforce, with the number of employees in their 20s dropping by 47,498 – from 291,235 to 243,737 – during the same period.

Samsung Display Co. experienced the most dramatic decrease, with its proportion of 20-something employees plummeting from 43.8 percent to 28.4 percent over two years. Other tech giants, including SK On Co., LG Innotek Co., and Samsung SDI Co., also reported substantial declines.

Industry leaders weren’t immune to this trend. Samsung Electronics Co. saw its share of employees in their 20s fall from 30.8 percent in 2022 to 24.2 percent in 2024. SK hynix Inc. faced an even steeper decline, with numbers dropping from 29.6 percent to 20.8 percent.

However, not all companies followed this downward trajectory. Hyundai Motor Co. bucked the trend, increasing its proportion of workers in their 20s from 20.8 percent to 21.8 percent. Similarly, LG Electronics Inc. saw a modest rise from 17 percent to 18 percent.

An official at CEO Score attributed this shift to changing recruitment strategies. “Companies are moving away from large-scale open recruitment towards hiring practices that favor experienced workers,” the official explained. This trend could have far-reaching implications for South Korea’s job market and the career prospects of its young workforce.