Young giving up on marriage and childbirth due to lack of 'decent' jobs
- 6 years ago
A group of experts has looked into the problem of the low birth rate and low number of marriages in South Korea and they have found that the problem is not because young people don't want to get married and have kids, but because life is too hard on them.
Hong Yoo has this story.
People in their twenties and thirties are giving up on marriage and childbirth, not because they don't want to get married, but because they cannot find a "decent" job.
This diagnosis came from a group of experts formed by the Presidential Committee on Aging Society and Population Policy.
Marriage and childbirth rates are closely linked.
But to get married and make a family, people first need a job.
The phenomenon of youth unemployment, and way that employment has become a prerequisite for other things in life, shows why young people see themselves as a generation that has to give up on things like dating, marriage, gaining work-experience, and owning a house. Some people have expanded this list to include giving up on a social life, and even giving up hope.
According to Statistics Korea, the youth unemployment rate has increased to 11-point-3 percent in 2017, compared to just 7-point-4 percent in 2008.
Experts say this is because it is difficult to find a "decent job", meaning a job that provides a good income and a career path.
Experts say that in order to solve the low birth rate problem, stable employment and residential environment must go hand in hand with improved child care services and financial assistance for child education.
They also advised increasing the level of subjective satisfaction by eliminating gender discrimination, such as women facing glass ceilings at work and having to take care of children without help from their partners,... in order to overcome the world's longest hyper-low birth rate.
Hong Yoo, Arirang News.
Hong Yoo has this story.
People in their twenties and thirties are giving up on marriage and childbirth, not because they don't want to get married, but because they cannot find a "decent" job.
This diagnosis came from a group of experts formed by the Presidential Committee on Aging Society and Population Policy.
Marriage and childbirth rates are closely linked.
But to get married and make a family, people first need a job.
The phenomenon of youth unemployment, and way that employment has become a prerequisite for other things in life, shows why young people see themselves as a generation that has to give up on things like dating, marriage, gaining work-experience, and owning a house. Some people have expanded this list to include giving up on a social life, and even giving up hope.
According to Statistics Korea, the youth unemployment rate has increased to 11-point-3 percent in 2017, compared to just 7-point-4 percent in 2008.
Experts say this is because it is difficult to find a "decent job", meaning a job that provides a good income and a career path.
Experts say that in order to solve the low birth rate problem, stable employment and residential environment must go hand in hand with improved child care services and financial assistance for child education.
They also advised increasing the level of subjective satisfaction by eliminating gender discrimination, such as women facing glass ceilings at work and having to take care of children without help from their partners,... in order to overcome the world's longest hyper-low birth rate.
Hong Yoo, Arirang News.