Yi Whan-woo is a Korea Times journalist primarily covering finance. He writes in-depth articles on macroeconomy and financial markets and previously covered sports, politics, diplomacy and inter-Korean affairs, among others. Feel free to contact him at yistory@koreatimes.co.kr.
Immigrant workers' quota rises to 62,000
By Yi Whan-woo
The nation will raise this year’s quota of low-skilled immigrant workers to 62,000 from 57,000 in 2012.
The Ministry of Employment and Labor said Thursday that the increased quota is aimed at meeting higher demand for foreign workers in the farming, fishing, construction, and manufacturing industries.
Of the total number of foreign workers required for this year, 52,000 will be those who never worked in Korea under the Employment Permit System (EPS) run by the ministry.
The remaining 10,000 will be those who are given permission to work here again by the ministry and who hold a record of good performances in previous workplaces.
“And among those new 52,000 workers, 6,000 of them were already given permission in the fourth quarter of last year to work here,” said Jang Hyun-suk, a senior deputy director of the foreign workforce policy division under the ministry. “Some 5,000 of the 6,000 selected workers will work at plants while another 1,000 will work on farms.”
Small- and mid-sized firms in five industries including service business can hire manual laborers from the 15 Asian countries, including China, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Pakistan, under the EPS.
Each industry has its own quota set by the ministry. In 2011, the companies in farming, fishing, construction, and manufacturing sectors fulfilled their respective quota by September. And the demand by employers running farms or factories have since increased, according to Jang.
He added that the ministry decided to select 6,000 workers in advance as it takes up to three months for a foreign laborer to get the required E-9 visa and enter Korea.
“The factories run regardless of the seasons, and also a number of farmers grow vegetables and fruit in greenhouses during the winter. And that’s why we came up with a measure to help employers run their business efficiently,” he said.
To recruit the remaining 46,000 workers, employers can apply at the ministry’s local offices across the country between Jan. 14 and 25.
Of the 46,000 laborers, 37,600 are set aside for the manufacturing industry, 4,600 for farming, 2,150 for fisheries, 1,560 for construction and 90 for the service sector.
Employers have so far hired migrant workers on a first come, first serve basis. But from this year, hiring will be based on a system under which each employer will be graded using a point award system. Those with higher numbers of points will be given priority in recruiting migrant workers.