Seoul, Dec 31 The number of high-skilled workers in South Korea grew for the fourth consecutive year in 2024, with such jobs in the semiconductor sector increasing by the most, government data showed on Wednesday.
The total number of industrial technology workers stood at 1.74 million as of end-2024, up 1.1 per cent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources, reports Yonhap news agency.
Industrial technology workers refer to high-skilled employees, such as technicians, manufacturers, IT workers, research and development (R&D) personnel, and company executives.
Last year marked the fourth consecutive year such a workforce grew, according to the data.
Over 60 per cent of such high-skilled workers were employed in the country's 12 key industries, including semiconductors, bio, automobiles, defence and IT.
The chip industry saw the largest on-year growth of such jobs at 4.3 per cent, followed by the bio and IT industries at 4 per cent and 2.1 per cent, respectively.
High-skilled jobs in the shipbuilding sector grew for the second consecutive year, after declining for eight straight years, the ministry said.
In contrast, the high-skilled workforce in the textile sector shrank last year, marking the fifth consecutive year of decline.
The shortage of industrial technology workers relative to business demand was 39,834. The shortage rate stood at 2.2 percent, remaining unchanged since 2020, according to the data.
Meanwhile, the government in October assigned 5.12 billion won (US$3.58 million) from its reserve fund to support programs aimed at attracting foreign talents after the United States' decision to raise visa fees for professionals.
The spending plan was approved during a Cabinet meeting presided over by President Lee Jae Myung.
The government said the budget will be used for promotional programs to attract skilled foreign workers in response to the U.S. visa policy change.
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