South Korea added around 600,000 jobs in 2019 mainly on the back of a rise in job positions in the public sector and social welfare service segment, data showed Thursday.

The country's total jobs reached 24 million in 2019, up 2.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.

The rise was mainly attributable to an increase in job positions provided by smaller firms and non-profit companies, the data showed.

The number of additional jobs at large businesses reached 60,000, while small and medium enterprises and non-profit businesses added 230,000 and 320,000 job posts on-year, respectively.

The government has put priority on creating more jobs as the slowing economy dented the job market. The Moon Jae-in administration has increased job posts in the public sector in a bid to prop up job growth.

This year, South Korea's job market remained bleak due to the fallout of the new coronavirus outbreak, with the country reporting job losses every month since March.

By sector, the health and social welfare service sector added 160,000 jobs on-year in 2019, and the wholesale and retail segment added 80,000 job posts. The public administration service sector also saw an increase of 80,000 jobs.

But the manufacturing industry, the backbone of the Korean economy, added just 30,000 jobs last year, while the construction sector shed 70,000 jobs.

By age, jobs for those aged 60 and older increased by the largest margin of 340,000 as the government raised temporary work positions for older people.

Job posts for those in their 50s rose by 220,000, and those for people in their 20s increased by 100,000 in an indication that the job market remained sluggish for young job seekers. The number of job posts for those in their 40s declined by 50,000. (Yonhap)