Business · Economy · 2 hrs ago
55.5% of South Korean petrochemical workers who left jobs found new work
South Korea’s petrochemical industry is restructuring after a prolonged downturn.
From 2024 through August 2026, 32,900 of 59,300 people who lost insured jobs in the sector were recorded as re-employed, a rate of 55.5%.
The re-employment status of the other 26,400 people was not confirmed, so the figures do not show that they are all unemployed.
Employment at nine major companies fell by 13.8% from the end of 2024 to August 2026, while insured jobs also declined in industrial centres including Yeosu, Seosan and Ulsan.
Workers and companies are seeking job-retention funding and retraining to help staff move into new roles as firms shift towards higher-value products.
The government says it is reviewing employment support and plans to announce a comprehensive chemical industry support package by year-end, including measures to limit job insecurity and damage to local economies.
South Korean petrochemical workers who lost insured employment between 2024 and August 2026 had a 55.5% recorded reemployment rate.
Of 59,300 workers whose employment-insurance coverage ended, 32,900 were recorded as reemployed.
The reemployment status of the other 26,400 workers was not confirmed.
Employment-insurance membership at nine major petrochemical companies fell 13.8% from the end of 2024 to August 2026.
The government plans to announce a comprehensive support package for the chemical industry by the end of 2026.
- Who
- South Korean petrochemical workers whose employment-insurance coverage ended.
- What
- 32,900 of 59,300 workers were recorded as reemployed, a rate of 55.5%.
- When
- From 2024 through August 2026.
- Where
- South Korea.
- Why
- The industry is facing a prolonged downturn and restructuring.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
The period covered by the employment-insurance data began.
The data showed 32,900 of 59,300 workers whose coverage ended had been reemployed.
The government plans to announce a comprehensive support package for the chemical industry.
- Workers whose coverage ended
- 59,300
- Recorded as reemployed
- 32,900 (55.5%)
- Reemployment status unconfirmed
- 26,400
- Workers at nine major companies
- 31,661 at end-2024; 27,303 in August 2026
- Major-company employment-insurance decline
- 4,358 workers (13.8%)
1 source
What people are saying
Smaller companies, including subcontractors, have little room to do even this and may have no alternative to direct workforce cuts.
Restructuring the petrochemical industry is not only a matter for companies but a matter of workers’ and regions’ survival.