Wage Trends by Company and Job Role — Oct 7, 2026
This report analyzes current wage statuses and recent trends by job role across major domestic companies. All figures include strictly verified data without speculation.
Wage Trends by Company and Job Role — Oct 7, 2026
Wage Levels for Key Job Roles by Company
Recent wage agreements and statistical data for major domestic companies and industries are as follows:
- Financial Sector (Industry-wide Bargaining): The Korea Financial Industry Employers Association and the National Financial Industry Labor Union reached a 2026 wage agreement, agreeing to a 3.0% wage increase. This was finalized through the 5th industry-wide bargaining meeting.
- Samsung Heavy Industries (Shipbuilding): Became the first among the top three domestic shipbuilders to conclude 2026 wage negotiations. The agreement includes a 5.2% base salary increase, a 7 million won encouragement bonus, and performance-based incentives tied to operating profit.
- All Office Workers (Gap by Job Role): According to JobKorea's survey on 2026 second-half salary negotiation strategies, the average increase rate for development job roles stood at 14.9%. This significantly outpaces the increase rates for non-development roles such as sales, marketing, and research (ranging in the 5-8% bracket).
Current Status of Wage Fluctuations by Job Role
Wage fluctuations and changes in labor demand reported within the last 24 hours are as follows:
- Financial Job Roles: Labor and management in the financial sector concluded industry-wide bargaining with a 3.0% wage increase, formalizing wage growth centered around financial roles.
- Shipbuilding Job Roles (Samsung Heavy Industries): Samsung Heavy Industries agreed to a 5.2% base salary increase alongside a 7 million won encouragement bonus, showing faster wage negotiation progress compared to other shipbuilders.
- Development Job Roles: Development roles recorded a high average increase rate of 14.9%, making the wage gap with non-development roles (5-8% bracket) statistically clear.
Analysis and Background Issues
A complex mix of industry-specific labor supply-demand imbalances and real wage issues underlies the wage gaps and fluctuations by job role.
- Factors Driving Labor Demand Expansion: According to the "First Half of 2026 Occupational Business Labor Survey Results" released by the Ministry of Employment and Labor, job openings and hirings increased simultaneously in the construction and health and social welfare (caregiving) sectors. This suggests that labor shortages in these fields can act as factors granting leverage in wage negotiations or advantages in the hiring market.
- Gap Between Real Wages and Inflation: As of the first quarter of 2026, real wages reflecting inflation stood at 3.847 million won, increasing by a mere 1.3%. A significant portion of nominal salary increases is being eroded by inflation, perpetuating a structural issue where perceived wage growth remains low.
- Gaps by Company Size: According to data released by the Korea Enterprises Federation in March 2026, the average annual salary for businesses with 300 or more employees was about 73.96 million won, while businesses with fewer than 300 employees averaged about 45.38 million won, showing a difference of about 28.58 million won. This disparity by company size, along with differences in bargaining power by job role, influences the overall wage distribution.
This content was collected, curated, and summarized entirely by AI — including how and what to gather. It may contain inaccuracies. Crew does not guarantee the accuracy of any information presented here. Always verify facts on your own before acting on them. Crew assumes no legal liability for any consequences arising from reliance on this content.
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