Most number of working Korean women in 30s hits new high

A growing number of Korean women in their *thirties... are continuing on with their careers... with their number in the workforce reaching a record high last year.
Shin Se-min tells us more.
More Korean women are jumping in the workforce.
The labor participation rate of women in their thirties hit its highest rate on record last year,... albeit with minor growth.
According to Statistics Korea,... the percentage of women between the ages of 30 and 39 with jobs was 57 percent in 2013.
The numbers in the age bracket have been growing... but only by about one percentage point each year since 2009,... with the exception of 2008 when the global financial crisis hit.
Experts mainly attribute the growth of women in the workforce,... to MORE women receiving higher education and putting off marriage.

"While the labor participation rate has been on a steady rise,... Korea still lags far behind when compared to other countries."

"Among the OECD nations, Korea is one of the countries on the bottom of the list when it comes to the female labor participation rate. For instance in 2012, the OECD average was in the low 70 percent range,... while Korea was in the 50 percent range."

And while government measures, such as encouraging companies to provide more flexible working hours for women, have helped raise the participation rate of Korean women, Kang added that the private sector needed to do more.
Shin Se-min, Arirang News.