The outcry over the narrow job market has been long growing, especially for our young people. But latest data show that the problem is getting worse.

The government’s statistics office said that the nation’s overall jobless rate stood at 4.6 percent last month, the highest since the rate hit 4.9 percent in February 2010.

As expected, the jobless rate for young people aged 15 to 29 is much worse. The rate, continuing its ascent for the 18th consecutive month, hit 11.1 percent in February, which is the highest since July 1999.

It is sad that today’s young people are facing almost the same hardships as those when the nation was reeling in the aftermath of the Asian financial crisis in 1997-1998.

One need not even look into data but just take a look around. Many college graduates, including those from top-notch schools like Seoul National University, Korea and Yonsei universities, are having difficulty landing decent jobs.

As a result, many young people are driven to temporary, part-time jobs at small firms, restaurants, convenience stores, gas stations and even construction sites. Government figures show that 19.5 percent of youths who were employed last year had jobs that lasted no more than one year.

Making matters worse, these irregular positions are being taken by more middle-aged people and the elderly who are struggling to make a living amid the drawn-out economic slowdown. The onrush of retirement by the baby boomers is further straining the job market.

Amidst all this, the extended slump is forcing businesses to curtail employment. A recent survey found that the 30 largest conglomerates plan to cut their hiring this year by 6.3 percent.

This grim situation shows that all the touted government measures for increasing jobs ― like those for bolstering domestic consumption and supporting the services sector ― are not working.

One prime example is deregulation, which is key for shifting job creation from manufacturing to the services sector. The government promised one year ago to push for a drastic deregulation drive ― President Park Geun-hye even defined unnecessary regulations as “cancer.”

The result? A Federation of Korean Industries report found that regulations in the services industry increased 13.5 percent over the past year. This was no exception in the seven service sectors the Park administration promised to foster.

Next year, the retirement age at workplaces with 300 or more employees increases to 60, which is certain to have considerable effects on the job market for young people.

Yet, neither the government nor businesses are ready to meet this and other challenges. For instance, only 9.4 percent of 9,034 firms with 100 employees or more have adopted a wage peak system in preparation for the higher retirement age, according to Labor Ministry data.

It is a given that businesses unable to cope with increased personnel expenses will opt to suspend or reduce hiring, which will further shrink the entry-level job market for young people.

This means the ongoing labor market reform should go in tandem with other measures to generate more jobs for the young. If our young people only see a bleak future, so will the nation.