The Korea Times close
National
  • Politics
  • Diplomacy
  • Defense
  • Labor & Environment
  • Law & Crime
  • Health & Welfare
  • Embassy
  • Seoul & Provinces
  • Education
  • Foreign Communities
  • Obituaries
  • Multicultural Youth Award
Biz & Tech
  • Auto
  • IT
  • Game
  • Manufacturing
  • Retail & Food
  • Energy
  • Construction
  • Airlines
Finance
  • Policies
  • Economy
  • Markets
  • Banks
  • Non-banks
  • Economic Essay Contest
Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Thoughts of the Times
  • Cartoon
  • Today in History
  • Blogs
  • Tribune Service
  • Blondie & Garfield
  • Letter to the Editor
Lifestyle
  • Arts
  • Books
  • Travel & Cuisine
  • Trend
  • Fashion
  • Around Town
  • Fortune Telling
Entertainment
  • K-pop
  • K-dramas & Shows
  • Movies
  • Music
  • Performances
  • Asia Model Festival
Sports
  • Football
  • Golf
  • Baseball
  • Other Sports
World
  • Asia Pacific
  • Americas
  • Europe & Africa
  • SCMP
Video
  • On the Spot
  • Feature
  • News
Photos
  • Photo News
  • Darkroom
Community
  • The Korea Times
  • search
  • Site Map
  • E-paper
  • Subscribe
  • Register
  • LogIn
search close
  • The Korea Times
  • search
  • Site Map
  • E-paper
  • Subscribe
  • Register
  • LogIn
search close
National
  • Politics
  • Diplomacy
  • Defense
  • Labor & Environment
  • Law & Crime
  • Health & Welfare
  • Embassy
  • Seoul & Provinces
  • Education
  • Foreign Communities
  • Obituaries
  • Multicultural Youth Award
Wed, January 20, 2021 | 13:19
-------------------------
Illegal foreign workers face tougher rules
Posted : 2016-03-16 17:14
Updated : 2016-03-16 19:26
Mail
Print Preview
Font Size Up
Font Size Down
Gov't will launch monitoring ystem to reduce overstays

By Chung Ah-young

The Ministry of Employment and Labor said Wednesday that it will reduce the quota of foreign workers from countries with high numbers of illegal workers here.

Minister Lee Ki-kwon urged the ambassadors of the countries that send foreign workers to Korea under the Employment Permit System to strengthen measures on their overstaying workers.

The ministry plans to introduce a comprehensive monitoring system for migrant workers this year.

Under the plan, the government will also increase the quota for foreign workers of the countries with low numbers of illegal workers.

The monitoring system is designed to determine the quota of foreign workers based on the evaluation of a countries' ability to select and train workers before sending them to Korea and their efforts to have them return to their home countries after their visas expire. The evaluation will be conducted twice a year.

"Each country should make efforts to prevent foreign workers from staying here illegally. Countries with high numbers of workers staying illegally should come up with measures to reduce this," Lee said in a meeting with the ambassadors at the Press Center in Seoul.

Lee expressed the view with the ambassadors that reducing the number of foreign workers staying in the country illegally will protect the human rights of foreign employees.

Lee also discussed ways of teaching the Korean language to the workers and other vocational skills and experiences as standards for selecting the foreign workers to come to Korea.

Illegal foreign workers who stayed in Korea after their work visas expired amounted to 16.9 percent in 2013, 15.6 percent in 2014 and 15.3 percent last year.

Since the permit system was introduced in 2004, 540,000 foreign workers have come to Korea as of last year. Currently, 280,000 foreign employees are working under the system for some 50,000 small-and-medium-sized companies.

The permit system allows employers who haven't been able to hire from the local workforce to legally employ foreign workers managed by the Korean government or public institutions.

Currently, the government has signed agreements with 15 countries such as China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand.


Emailchungay@ktimes.com Article ListMore articles by this reporter
Korea lacks foreign workers with professional skills
Out of 629,671 foreigners with working visas as of November 2015, the majority of them were unskilled workers and only 7.8 percent were career professionals, a report showed, Monda...
Foreign workers fall victim to discriminatory rules
Despite growing racial diversity in Korea, discrimination against migrants remains widespread, hindering their integration into Korean society. A coalition of civic groups supporti...
32% Koreans don't want to live next door to immigrant workers
Koreans still lag behind in openness toward racial diversity, according to a recent survey. ...
Immigrant workers play increasingly important role
When President Park Geun-hye visited an industrial complex south of Seoul last March, most of the small-business executives there cited the difficulty in securing manpower as their...
Korea urged to embrace immigrants
Korea will eventually have to accept immigration as one of most effective means of tackling its decreasing population amid a record low birthrate, analysts said Thursday. ...









 
WooriBank
 
  • Conflicts over noise in apartments on the rise amid pandemic
  • Lee's imprisonment forces Samsung into emergency mode
  • Moon's changing stance on Japan linked to North Korea engagement: experts
  • Calls growing for better system to prevent child abuse
  • Moon's remarks on 'adoption cancellation' spark controversy
  • Government push for profit-sharing angers conglomerates
  • Biden-Harris inauguration is taking shape [PHOTOS]
  • Yoido Full Gospel Church's pastor stresses Martin Luther King's nonviolence amid COVID-19
  • Low-priced blue-chip companies in green sectors expected to enjoy rally
  • Inauguration parade
  • K-pop expands from entertainment to activism K-pop expands from entertainment to activism
  • Red Velvet's Irene to make silver screen debut in February Red Velvet's Irene to make silver screen debut in February
  • 'The Uncanny Counter' writer leaves show despite soaring ratings 'The Uncanny Counter' writer leaves show despite soaring ratings
  • Boy group Cravity features in Airbnb's 'Inside K-pop' program Boy group Cravity features in Airbnb's 'Inside K-pop' program
  • Netflix to roll out more original series based on Korean webtoons in 2021 Netflix to roll out more original series based on Korean webtoons in 2021
DARKROOM
  • Biden-Harris inauguration is taking shape [PHOTOS]

    Biden-Harris inauguration is taking shape [PHOTOS]

  • Second Trump impeachment

    Second Trump impeachment

  • Pro-Trump rioters breach the US Capitol

    Pro-Trump rioters breach the US Capitol

  • Our children deserve better (Part 2)

    Our children deserve better (Part 2)

  • Migrants hard hit by COVID-19: UN migration agency

    Migrants hard hit by COVID-19: UN migration agency

WooriBank
  • About Korea Times
  • CEO Message
  • Times History
  • Content Sales
  • Media Kit
  • Contact Us
  • Location
  • Privacy Statement
  • Terms of Service
  • Mobile Service
  • RSS Service
  • Ombudsman
  • hankookilbo
  • Dongwha Group
  • Code of Ethics
Copyright