Gloomy jobs numbers out today -- <br />A report from the Korea Employment Information Service... shows the number of people collecting unemployment benefits in the first quarter of this year hit an all-time high.<br /> It says the amount of benefits paid to 628-thousand people totaled one-point-four billion U.S. dollars in the first quarter.<br />The number of recipients rose by 6-point-9 percent from a year earlier... to the highest level since related data was first compiled eight years ago.<br />The report suggests it's not just because more people are applying for benefits, but reflects a real rise in unemployment.<br />Contributing to that... has been sluggish growth in the construction sector and this year's 16-point-4-percent increase in the minimum wage to around seven U.S. dollars an hour. <br />
