Companies with 300 or more regular employees reported nearly 5.92 million workers this year, an increase of 91,000 from the previous year. While the number of directly employed workers rose, the number of non-regular workers, including those hired through dispatch, subcontracting, and service contracts, decreased. However, the proportion of temporary and part-time workers among regular employees increased.
The Ministry of Employment and Labor announced these findings on September 29 as part of its "2026 Employment Type Disclosure Results." This year, 4,205 companies were subject to disclosure, an increase of 29 from last year, with a disclosure rate of 99.9%, leaving only three companies undisclosed.
The total number of disclosed workers was 5,918,000, up by 91,000 from the previous year. Among them, the number of directly employed regular workers rose to 4,983,000, an increase of 107,000. Their share of the total rose from 83.7% to 84.2%, a 0.5 percentage point increase.
In contrast, the number of non-regular workers, employed by other businesses but working at the company’s site, decreased by 16,000 to 936,000, lowering their share from 16.3% to 15.8%, also a 0.5 percentage point drop.
The decline in non-regular workers was also observed last year. In the 2025 disclosure, regular workers increased while non-regular workers decreased, a trend that continued this year. However, the decrease this year was smaller, at 16,000, compared to 67,000 reported last year.
Within the directly employed workforce, changes in employment types were noted. Among the 4,983,000 regular workers, those with indefinite contracts increased by 41,000 to 3,570,000, but their share fell from 72.4% to 71.7%, a 0.7 percentage point decrease.
The number of temporary workers rose by 67,000 to 1,412,000, increasing their share from 27.6% to 28.3%, a 0.7 percentage point rise. Part-time workers also increased by 27,000 to 450,000, with their share rising from 8.7% to 9.0%.
The ministry analyzed that the increase in jobs in the health, welfare, and social services sectors, along with some companies re-hiring workers who reached retirement age as temporary or part-time employees, contributed to these changes. In the health and welfare sector, temporary workers increased by 29,000, and part-time workers rose by 20,000.
By company size, the proportion of non-regular workers was highest at 22.2% among large companies with over 5,000 employees. In companies with 1,000 to 4,999 employees, the proportion of temporary workers was the largest at 35.2%. By industry, the share of non-regular workers was highest in shipbuilding at 64.6%, followed by arts, sports, and leisure services at 47.0%, and construction at 41.5%.
By gender, the proportion of temporary workers among women was 33.5%, 8.6 percentage points higher than the 24.9% for men. The share of part-time workers also showed a difference, with women at 15.1% and men at 5.0%.
Minister of Employment and Labor Kim Young-hoon stated, "The increase in the number and proportion of regular workers in disclosed companies is a positive development. We will support companies in improving their employment practices while ensuring that workers do not face unreasonable discrimination based on their employment type."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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