Public institutions hired about 9,730 people in the first half of this year, dropping below previous averages and missing the target, data by All Public Information in One (Alio), a government portal, showed.

The newly recruited people accounted for 49 percent of the 19,862 new workers they planned to hire for the entire year. The initial goal was to meet 55.9 percent of the target by the end of June. The Moon Jae-in administration had prioritized job creation and added 2,500 more to the target for the year.

Government officials said the lackluster number in the first half, and particularly in the second quarter derived from an employment lull during the political upheaval upon the impeachment of then-President Park Geun-hye.