Young Kazakhstanis Are Moving Into Trade and Working Overtime
AI-generated illustration
Young people in Kazakhstan continue to lose ground in the labor market. Most young specialists work in trade rather than in their field, and nearly half a million are working overtime, Orda.kz reports, citing Finprom analysts.
In 2025, 643,000 young Kazakhstanis worked in trade. That was more than in any other sector. Education ranked second with 458,800, followed by agriculture with 336,900. At the same time, only 102,400 young people were employed in IT and communications, and even fewer in the financial sector, at 96,500.
In 2025, more than half of employed young Kazakhstanis had higher education, while about 1.6 million more had technical and vocational education. However, most of them worked in trade, while employment in high-tech and financial sectors remained significantly lower.
According to the analysts, the position of young people in the labor market is weakening. The share of salaried employees fell to 38.9%, while the total number of employed young people stood at 3.6 million and changed little over the year. The number of employees remained at about 2.8 million, while growth in self-employment came to a halt, with the figure falling to 816,400.
There has also been increased migration to cities, where the number of employed young people rose to 2.3 million. At the same time, in rural areas it fell to 1.4 million. This increased pressure on the urban labor market.
The analysts also pointed to problems with working conditions. About 496,200 young Kazakhstanis worked more than 41 hours a week. Another 53,700 were formally listed as employed, but were temporarily without work.
Overall, the analysts describe the situation as tense. Young people continue to play a significant role in the economy, but they are more often finding jobs in trade and much less often in sectors where their knowledge and qualifications are in demand.
Original author: Daria Malkova
Read also:
- Analysts Warn That Rising Costs Are Eating Into Kazakhstanis’ Incomes
- Employment Rate In Kazakhstan Falls Despite Lower Unemployment
- Kazakhstan Eases Entry for Investors While Tightening Permanent Residence Rules
Latest news
- Kazakhstan Moves To Ban Imports Of Radioactive Waste
- The Government Says It Has A Plan To Raise Kazakhstanis’ Incomes
- Kazakh Bloggers May Be Fined For Unofficial Political Endorsements
- Kazakhstan’s Average Salary Rose, But Real Incomes Continued To Fall
- KNB Special Forces Bring Four Terrorism Suspects Back To Kazakhstan By Plane
- German Police Open Case Against Fugitive Ex-Prosecutor Duissenov
- Kazakhstani Meat Exports Remain Competitive Despite Uzbekistan’s Subsidies
- Kazakhstan’s Real Estate Market Showed Signs Of Recovery In April
- Fuel And Ore Theft Schemes Uncovered At Kazakhmys Facilities
- Goods Marked “Made In Kazakhstan” To Get Priority Placement On Marketplaces
- Ecology Ministry Explains 13 Million Tenge Fine For Picking Dandelions
- Kazakhstan Refineries Increase Oil Processing Depth To 90%
- High Rates No Longer Keep Kazakh Banks’ Profits Rising, Analysts Say
- Almaty Health Officials Prepare for Possible Hantavirus Cases
- Ministry Says Saiga Deaths Remain Within Natural Limits
- Kazakhstan Faces Shortage of Doctors and IT Specialists
- Kazakhstan Petition Calls for VAT Removal on Feminine Hygiene Products
- Kazakhstan to Publish Register of Convicted Economic Crime Offenders
- Kazakhstan’s Economy Grew 3.6% in Four Months
- Shymkent Colleges Used Fictitious Students to Steal Over 1.3 Billion Tenge
