The majority, or 77.5% of office workers in South Korea are experiencing ‘rapid turnover’, according to a survey conducted by South Korea-based Saramin HR.

Saramin HR, which operates one of the leading job boards in South Korea alongside a range of additional recruitment services, surveyed 1,471 office workers.

Unsatisfactory salary was the leading reason for the desire to change jobs at 52.4%, followed by low working environment at 43.2%, and lack of potential for company development at 41.1%.

Furthermore, the respondents reported that on average, they experienced three job turnovers.

Meanwhile, sectors experiencing the highest turnover are in accounting/tax/finance at 12%, marketing/PR/research at 11.2%, planning and strategy at 9.8%, sales and trade at 9.5%, and IT development/data at 8.8%.

According to Saramin HR, the job turnovers are especially noticeable in IT with companies preferring to recruit less experienced developers who adapt better to new environments, and to reduce the difficulty of hiring.

Since Saramin HR launched its registration services for job seekers in June 2020, its talent pool has grown by 63.7%. More employers are also taking advantage of the service, with an increase of 29.5% in the second half of 2022 compared to the same period the previous year.

Saramin HR also reported a new trend among job seekers, noting that about two-thirds of all individual members have submitted CVs hoping to receive job offers. Of that number, 62.1% say they always keep their CV open despite already being employed in the event a better opportunity for employment comes.

“Now that business uncertainty is greater than ever, the preference for on-the-job recruitment, which selects talents who can be active immediately when needed, will be further strengthened,” said Jeongsoon Moon, director of Saramin Business Office.