According to a report by Reuters on August 3, facing difficulties in finding employment among young people in their home country, an increasing number of South Korean graduates are choosing Japan as their destination for job hunting. This choice seems unusual: the average salary in South Korea is slightly higher than that in Japan, yet young people are willing to cross the sea in search of a job with potentially lower earnings.
Since the beginning of this year, Seoul has held at least three job fairs for Japanese companies. Companies such as Canon Imaging Systems and industrial automation firm Asahi Automation have gone to South Korea to recruit employees directly. By 2025, 2,257 young people will work in Japan through government programs in South Korea, a 47% increase from previous years. Japan has become the largest overseas destination for South Korean youth for the second consecutive year; meanwhile, the number of young people working in the United States decreased by 29%. Currently, there are over 80,000 South Koreans working in Japan, mainly in industries such as retail, IT, and game development.
This is not yet a case of 'large-scale emigration' by Korean youth. The comparison of 'lower salaries' between the two countries does not mean that every person who goes to Japan is receiving a reduced salary. However, the increasing number of young people willing to consider Japan reveals a stark reality: for those just entering the workplace, having a job is becoming more important than whether the salary is high enough.
The problem in South Korea is not that there are no good companies, but rather that there are too few high-quality entry-level positions.
Large companies like Samsung are increasingly preferring experienced candidates who can start working immediately. Additionally, a large number of middle-aged and elderly employees remain in their positions, leaving little room for fresh graduates to enter the workforce. As a result, young people are trapped in a cycle: companies require work experience, but without their first job, they cannot gain experience.
In June this year, the unemployment rate among young people in South Korea was 7.0%; in Japan, the overall unemployment rate during the same period was 2.5%. Although the data from both countries do not match exactly, they still illustrate a significant difference in the labor markets of the two nations: young people in South Korea are competing fiercely for positions in a few large companies, while Japanese companies are struggling to find new employees.
Japan's biggest attraction for Korean graduates isn't high salaries, but the willingness to accept and train "blank slates" in the workplace.
Japanese companies maintain a relatively complete system for recruiting fresh graduates. Companies first recruit people and then provide them with internal training to help them adapt to their roles gradually. Korean companies, on the other hand, place more emphasis on "immediate productivity." Academic qualifications, certificates, and internship experience are often just the starting points for gaining interview opportunities. For Korean students who struggle to overcome the employment barriers, Japanese companies offer not only higher starting salaries but also a ticket to entering the formal workplace.
South Korean job seekers are also attracted to Japanese companies. Many of them have high educational levels and proficiency in the Japanese language, and they are relatively familiar with Japanese society and workplace culture. The efficiency and learning abilities developed by young South Koreans in the fierce competition can effectively fill the talent gap created by Japan's low birth rate.
Thus, a rare phenomenon of misalignment has arisen between Japan and South Korea: in one country, there are people who lack jobs, while in another country, there are jobs that are lacking workers.
However, the Japanese workplace is not a paradise for employment. Slow salary increases, seniority-based promotions, overly detailed job responsibilities, and the weakened purchasing power of the weak yen can all reduce its long-term attractiveness. Korean young people are more accustomed to seeking raises and promotions through job changes, while Japanese companies still prefer long-term employment. The longer the training period and the slower the promotion speed, the higher the likelihood of Korean employees leaving their jobs.
Therefore, working in Japan may be more of a career stepping stone for many Korean young people: they first gain their first formal job and project experience, and then decide whether to stay in Japan, return to Korea, or move to other markets.
What this trend really deserves attention in South Korea is not the fact that thousands of young people go to Japan, but rather the situation where their own country offers higher salaries, yet fails to provide graduates with a meaningful career starting point. When young people are willing to cross the sea for jobs that may offer lower salaries, it’s not about whether they work hard enough, but whether South Korean job markets are still willing to give newcomers opportunities.
