Seoul: The number of executives at South Korea's leading 30 conglomerates witnessed a decline last year, reflecting the impact of an economic slowdown. Meanwhile, the overall employee count at these firms saw an increase, as reported by a market tracker.
According to Yonhap News Agency, an analysis of 2024 business results from 235 affiliates of these top 30 conglomerates showed that the number of executives totaled 9,746 in 2024, marking a 0.7 percent decrease from the previous year. Conversely, the number of employees grew by 1.7 percent year-on-year, reaching 983,517. Consequently, the average number of employees per executive rose to 100.9, up from 98.5 during the same period.
The research firm Leaders Index noted that conglomerates opted to increase the number of working-level employees while decreasing high-paying executive roles due to an economic downturn and a widespread industry reorganization. Retail and construction sectors, in particular, reduced executive positions, resulting in higher employee-to-executive ratios compared to other sectors.
Shinsegae Group saw its employee-to-executive ratio jump significantly, with the number of employees per executive rising to 228.5 in 2024 from 197 the previous year. Similarly, construction firm DL E and C reported an increase in its ratio, climbing to 86.2 from 70.7. Hyundai Motor Group also experienced a rise in its figure, increasing by 10.3 to reach 149.1 from 138.8.