The number of people in their 20s and 30s with four-year college degrees who have been unemployed for more than six months has climbed to its highest level in 13 months, data showed Sunday.
A total of 119,000 people said they remained jobless for over six months last month despite efforts to find employment, marking the highest figure in four years, according to Statistics Korea.
The long-term unemployment rate had remained slightly above the 100,000 range in 2020 and 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic but had since stayed below that level before surging again last month.
Of the 658,000 unemployed people nationwide last month, long-term unemployment accounted for 18.1 percent.
In particular, people in their 20s and 30s with at least a four-year college degree totaled 35,000, the highest since September last year, when the number reached 36,000.
Although the number of young people classified as "taking a break," who are not engaged in any job-seeking activities, has decreased, experts say the job mismatch facing highly educated youths remains unresolved. (Yonhap)
