By Kwon Mee-yoo
Staff Reporter

A survey showed that migrant workers here face limited labor rights and a lack of medical benefits.

In a survey of 17,400 foreign workers from 2007 to 2009, the Joint Committee with Migrants in Korea (JCMK) found that the Employment Permit System (EPS) is not working out for them, with many migrant workers excluded from health benefits.

Currently, there are some 1.2 million migrants living in Korea, but the government does not have a proper medical policy for them.

JCMK Executive Secretary Lee Young said their right to medical care is directly related to the public health; to prevent the spread of contagious diseases, they need more support from the government.

"Previously, local public health centers offered basic vaccinations for migrants and their children for free, but the service was discontinued in 2008. Apart from married immigrants, most unregistered migrants such as refugees or stateless people are denied health benefits," Lee said.

The Migrant Health Association in Korea (MHAK) offered medical examinations and treatment to 361 people in 2007, 325 in 2008 and 251 in 2009. The ratio of males to females was 4 to 6, with obstetrics care taking up some 46 percent of patients visiting the MHAK.

"Many migrant workers become illegal aliens when they marry or give birth since this often leads to them changing their workplace to adapt to their new situation, or the spouses of migrant workers deliver while they are visiting Korea on a tourist visa," MHAK Secretary General Lee Ae-ran said.

"Many migrants have premature births or stillbirths due to insufficient health care at general hospitals and public health centers. The government should expand public medical services on humanitarian grounds."

In addition, consultations for the EPS also increased. The system, established in August 2004, allows employers to legally hire a certain number of foreign workers with the government responsible for managing migrant workers. Under the system, migrant workers have a fixed number of opportunities to change workplaces within a set period.

Lee of the JCMK said many migrant workers were forced to leave their workplace as their working conditions changed due to the financial hardships of 2008.

meeyoo@koreatimes.co.kr