SEOUL, August 26 (AJU PRESS) - Elderly people aged 60 and over accounted for a record high of 22.4 percent of the total workforce in South Korea this year, government data showed Monday.
According to the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and Statistics Korea, the average monthly number of employed individuals in the 60-plus age group during the first seven months totaled about 6.4 million.
Both their number and proportion in the total workforce were the highest on record. The percentage increased from 19.5 percent in 2021 to 20.4 percent in 2022 and to 21.6 percent last year.
As of July, seniors 60 years and older accounted for 27.8 percent of the total registered population of some 51.2 million.
A similar trend is observed in entrepreneurship among the elderly. From January to May, the number of startups founded by people aged 60 and over was 65,000, accounting for 13.6 percent of all startups, excluding the real estate sector.
South Korea is currently facing a demographic crisis. In 2023, the country's fertility rate reached a historic low of 0.72 babies per couple.
The Bank of Korea warns that, without effective government measures, there is a 90 percent chance the population could fall from 51 million in 2023 to under 40 million by 2070.
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