The Federation of Korean Trade Unions regained its number one position, with the largest number of members last year, outpacing the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions for the first time in three years. 

According to the labor ministry Thursday, over 41-point-one percent of workers in Korea who joined a labor union last year chose the Federation of Korean Trade Unions, while 40-point-four percent joined the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions.

The biggest union represents other labor unions in Korea, becoming the country's first umbrella union.

Meanwhile, the total number of workers who joined a labor union in Korea came to over two-point-eight million last year, which is around 14 percent of all workers eligible to join. 

The number of labor union members increased steadily, rising from around one-point-seven million in 2011 to over two million in 2017 before reaching over two-point-eight million last year.