The increase in the Korean unemployment rate between December 2007 and March 2010 was also less than 1%, but unemployment in January 2010 was 1.7 percentage points above the pre-crisis level. The upsurge in unemployment during the first two months of 2010 was probably due to the temporary expiration of a crisis-related public works programme. Reductions in employment may result from either increased job losses or reduced hiring.