Hit by the prolonged slump, South Korean shipbuilders and related businesses cut 8,670 or 14.8 percent of their workforce last year, data by industry tracker Chaebul.com showed Tuesday.

The data based on 2016 business reports from 1,831 listed firms showed that their combined workforce reached 1.51 million at the end of last year, down 5,915, or 0.4 percent, from a year ago.

Samsung Group slashed part of its workers as its flagship Samsung Electronics and other major subsidiaries implemented large-scale restructuring moves.

The software and game-developing sectors along with securities firms, on the other hand, increased their workforces.