Korean Labor Minister holds Dialogue with Ambassadors of Labor-sending Countries

"PARA PO SA LAHAT, ITO PO ANG TUGON TUNGKOL SA SIGNATURE CAMPAIGN UKOL SA PAGKAKAROON NG EXTENSION CONTRACT"..


Seoul, 18 March 2011 - Philippine Ambassador to Seoul Luis T. Cruz reported to the Department that Korean Labor Minister Bahk Jaewan met with Ambassadors and representatives of 15 labor-sending countries this morning.

During the meeting, Ambassador Cruz mentioned that 1,680 Filipino workers and 308 Korean employers submitted a petition to the Korean government, recommending improvements to the EPS regulations. The petition seeks the following amendments:

1. Waiver of the retaking of the Korean Language Test and other requirements for workers who have returned to the Philippines, but who wish to return to Korea under the EPS scheme;
2. Extension of the age limit , which is 38 under the existing MOU;
3. The extension of the stay of workers beyond the prescribed maximum of four years and 10 months; and
4. The reduction of the waiting period of six months before a former worker can return to Korea for a new sojourn.

Minister Bahk said that the issues raised would be considered by his Ministry, and that “some of them would be accepted in the future”. He declared, however, that the matter of extending the stay of foreign workers beyond the prescribed tenure would have to be addressed together with other Korean government agencies, such as the Ministry of Justice and the Korean Immigration Service.

During the meeting, Director General Han Chang-hun announced that for 2011, Korean will increase the quota of foreign workers to 48,000. The figure is arrived at based on the number of workers whose contracts will expire in 2011 (35,000) plus the number of undocumented workers (13,000). He warned, however that countries with a high rate of undocumented workers “will be subject to suspension of receiving process or rejection of the MOU renewal.”

Beginning 2004, Korea signed bilateral labor agreements with 15 countries through the Employment Permit System (EPS), which includes Indonesia, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Mongolia, Timor Leste, Pakistan, Vietnam, China, Nepal, Philippines, Kyrgiztan and Uzbekistan. The hiring of non-professional foreign workers is aimed to fill the vacancies in the manufacturing, agriculture and construction sectors, which are normally shunned by Korean workers.

During the last six years, the Philippines sent a total of 26,217 EPS workers to South Korea. A total of 1,250 have completed their contracts while another 6,452 will finish their contracts this year.


By: Philippine Embassy