South Korean Ministry criticized for youth employment budget miscalculation

The National Assembly Budget Office has criticized the South Korean Ministry of Employment and Labor for inaccurate budget forecasting regarding youth employment support programs. Despite requesting a supplementary budget to expand support, the Ministry failed to fully utilize its original primary budget last year.

In 2023, the Ministry increased the youth job creation support budget by approximately 25.4 billion won through a supplementary budget, bringing the total to 802.6 billion won. However, actual expenditures reached only about 718.8 billion won, falling short of the original budget of 777.2 billion won. The Budget Office noted that approximately 11.2 billion won of the remaining funds was redirected to cover labor inspector personnel costs.

The Ministry explained that the surplus occurred because some companies applied for multiple installments of support at once, delaying payments to the following year, or because certain companies failed to meet eligibility requirements. The Budget Office countered that these factors were predictable and have caused recurring budget surpluses since 2022, calling for more accurate forecasting in future supplementary budget requests.