( CNN ) -- The last seven South Koreans who remained at a manufacturing complex jointly run by North and South Korea left the area Friday -- further crumbling one of the few symbols of inter-Korean cooperation amid high tensions between the nations . The workers left the Kaesong Industrial Complex in North Korea and returned to the South , the South Korean Unification Ministry said . This marks the first time in the facility 's nine-year history that no South Korean workers are there . South Korean broadcaster YTN , a CNN affiliate , showed video of the South Koreans ' vehicles , with luggage tied on top , re-entering the South . The move caps a monthlong winding down of operations at the complex , which the North suspended during a frenzy of rhetoric aimed at South Korea and the United States last month . The North 's rhetoric intensified after the U.N. Security Council voted in March to slap tougher sanctions on the regime and amid U.S.-South Korean military drills in the region . The complex , which sits just north of the Demilitarized Zone that separates the two countries , houses the operations of more than 120 South Korean companies . One of the seven returning South Koreans , Hong Yang-ho , chairman of Kaesong Industrial District Management Committee , said his panel is urging North Korea to reopen the complex as soon as possible `` so as to minimize damages ( to ) relevant companies . '' `` We hope there will be further negotiations through various channels , '' he said Friday . South Korea presses North for talks on crisis at joint industrial zone . The North began blocking South Koreans from entering the complex across the heavily fortified border in April . It then pulled out more than 50,000 North Koreans who work in the zone 's factories , saying it was temporarily suspending activity there . The move surprised some observers since Kaesong was considered a key source of hard currency for the Kim Jong Un regime . Last week , South Korea started withdrawing its remaining citizens from the manufacturing zone jointly operated with the North . The seven South Koreans who returned Friday had remained at Kaesong to tie up loose ends . South Korea withdraws citizens from joint factory after North snubs talks . It is n't the first time Kaesong has shut down . In 2009 , North Korea temporarily suspended Kaesong Industrial Complex several times , not permitting South Koreans to enter and exit the zone . The suspension also took place during the annual U.S.-South Korean joint military drill . But that time , South Koreans still remained at the complex . In 2012 , the production value of the complex grew to $ 500 million ; five years earlier , it topped $ 100 million for the first time . The average wage for North Korean workers in Kaesong Industrial Complex is $ 134 per month , according to the South Korean Unification Ministry . North Korean authorities take about 45 % of their wages for various tax reasons .
The move marks the first time that no South Koreans are at 9-year - old industrial complex . North Korea suspended operations at the joint economic zone last year . North and South Koreans had worked at the Kaesong Industrial Complex in the past . The complex houses the headquarters of more than 120 South Korean companies .