Anchor: The number of people who work just two to three hours a day in South Korea has been escalating rapidly. Experts attribute the increase to a promotion of flexible working by the government and the economic downturn.
Kim In-kyung has more.
 
Report: The number of people who work ultra-short hours of about two to three hours a day three to four times a week has jumped to a five-year high.
 
According to Statistics Korea's third-quarter employee data released on Monday, the number of people who work a maximum of 17 hours a week numbered one-point-34 million.
 
The figure is up about 90-thousand on-year and is the highest since the third quarter of 2011.
 
The pace of increase has also been rapid. Over the past two quarters, the number of people with jobs increased at the one-percent range, but the number of the employed with ultra-short and flexible working times grew between four and seven percent.
 
The reason for the steep increase came with a surge in the number of jobs with flexible work hours.
 
The government has been promoting flexible working to create more job opportunities for women who stop working due to marriage or child rearing.
 
Analysts say that a downturn in the economy has also contributed to the rise in temporary workers as businesses prefer not to hire regular workers.
 
In fact, the number of ultra-short-hour workers soared in 1988 and 1989 during the Asian financial crisis and in 2009 and 2010 in the aftermath of the global financial upheaval.
 
Experts suggest improving part-time jobs by boosting the economy and expanding investment as many positions lack quality and come without welfare benefits.
Kim In-kyung, KBS World Radio News.