Gloomy jobs numbers out today --
A report from the Korea Employment Information Service... shows the number of people collecting unemployment benefits in the first quarter of this year hit an all-time high.
It says the amount of benefits paid to 628-thousand people totaled one-point-four billion U.S. dollars in the first quarter.
The number of recipients rose by 6-point-9 percent from a year earlier... to the highest level since related data was first compiled eight years ago.
The report suggests it's not just because more people are applying for benefits, but reflects a real rise in unemployment.
Contributing to that... has been sluggish growth in the construction sector and this year's 16-point-4-percent increase in the minimum wage to around seven U.S. dollars an hour.