Employees at large corporates top 3 million in 2023

[Photo by Yonhap]

The number of employees at South Korean large corporates exceeded three million for the first time in 2023, driven by the higher job seeker preference for larger companies and increased recruitment during the Covid-19 pandemic at these companies compared to that in small and medium-sized enterprises, many of which often engage in face-to-face operations.

According to statistics from Statistics Korea and the Financial Supervisory Service on Monday, the employee count at Korean large companies with more than 300 employees hit a record high of 3,087,000, up by 89,000 in a year and marking a 2.9 percent growth from the year before. It is the first time that the number of employees in large companies surpassed three million since the related statistics began to be compiled in 2004.

The workforce in large companies has steadily increased for six consecutive years from 2018 to 2023. Among all workforces, including self-employed individuals, employees at large companies accounted for 10.9 percent in 2023, up by 2.3 percentage points from 8.6 percent in 2013.

Among large companies, Samsung Electronics Co. had the largest workforce, with 124,070 employees as of June 2023, an increase of 6,166 from the previous year. Hyundai Motor Co. increased its workforce by 847 compared to the previous year, to 71,520 employees. Kia Corp. recorded 35,438 employees, followed by LG Electronics Inc. with 34,198 employees, SK hynix Inc. with 32,217 employees, and Korean Air Lines Co. with 17,839 employees.

The number of employees in small and medium-sized enterprises last year totaled 15,367,000, and that in micro-enterprises—companies with fewer than 5 employees—was 9,962,000, while the growth rate of employees in small and medium-sized enterprises was 1.1 percent.

“The increasing number of workers at stable large companies is positive,” Yonsei University professor Kim Jung-sik said, noting that the large companies favored by young jobseekers are expanding their recruitment programs.