Tough market forces graduates into part-time jobs

A part-timeer at a coffee shop wipes tables. / Korea Times file

College graduates are increasingly working part-time jobs because of the tough employment market.

According to a Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education & Training survey of 1,000 unemployed college graduates aged 20 to 34, 69 percent had a part-time job after graduation.

And they engaged in an average of 2.7 part-time jobs over 1.4 years.

Respondents worked an average of 23.4 hours a week, receiving an average 217,000 won.

While respondents in their early 20s cited "earning spending money (49.1 percent)," as the reason for working part-time, those 25 to 29 said it was “because they weren't able to get a regular job (33.8 percent).”

But when it came to the 30s age group, the largest percentage (30.2 percent) cited "earning spending money" as the reason.

The institute believed this was because people in their 30s had given up on employment and were going for the easier option.

For more than 70 percent of respondents in their 20s, “employment” was their biggest concern.

But for the 30s age group, their biggest worry was "financial problems (52.6 percent)."

"This shows the possibility that they give up finding a job and become psychologically intimidated due to long-term unemployment," the institute said.

"If unemployment continues till after 30, there is a high possibility that they may join the generation that gives up on employment, marriage and having children. There is a need for the government to create an employment support program for them.”