Young South Koreans take 10 months to find their first job

A majority of young South Koreans in this age bracket who had found their first job were paid less than 2 million won (US$1,739) per month. 

About 47.4% of them found their first job within three months after graduation, while 12.0% took one to two years to get their first job, 6.7% took two to three years and 8.2% took more than three years. 

For those with less than high school education, the time it took to find their first job was 14.2 months on average, much longer than the 7.7 months for those with a college degree. 

According to the Statistics Korea survey, about 73.3% received less than 2 million won (US$1,739) monthly in their first-year pay. 

The pay gap between genders was also apparent for these young South Koreans. About 37.7% of male workers were paid more than 2 million won (US$1,739) for their starting monthly salaries versus 22.0% for their female counterparts. 

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In addition, the survey found that young South Koreans stayed an average of 18.2 months at their first company, with the most cited reason by 46.2% of respondents for leaving the first job being unsatisfactory working conditions such as salary or working hours. It was followed by personal matters such as child-raising or marriage at 14.5% and termination of contract at 13.2%, according to Pulse News Korea.