Korean workers didn't get as much of a pay raise last year as they did in 2011.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor said the average wage increase stood at 4.7 percent in 2012, down 0.4 percentage points from a year earlier.

The figures were based on polls of companies with over 100 employees.

The ministry said corporations were reluctant to approve larger raises, incentives and bonuses due to uncertainties and sluggish economic conditions at home and abroad.