The number of Koreans heading overseas to work jumped a whopping 66 percent in the first 11 months of this year as unemployment here remains high among young people.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor said Wednesday that so far this year 3,295 Koreans have taken up jobs abroad and the total number is expected to surpass 4,000.

The prime destination was the U.S., where 771 Koreans found work, followed by Japan (665) and Singapore (514). Most work in the IT industry.

The ministry said the average salary of new overseas workers this year stood at W26.45 million, up around W1 million compared to 2014 (US$1=W1,169). The proportion of low-paid job nomads with annual incomes under W15 million fell from 12.4 percent in 2014 to just 0.4 percent this year.

Some 66.3 percent told the ministry they are satisfied with their new job and only 6.1 percent said they are unhappy.

More are taking up jobs in Southeast Asia and Latin America, up from 145 in 2014 to 282 this year. The usual position is in middle management of Korean companies that have operations overseas.

In Vietnam, the average annual salary is W31.91 million, which is higher than elsewhere, and nearly all the Koreans who work there are employed by Korean businesses.

The government expects the number of job nomads to rise to 5,000 in 2017.