release

In principle, foreign workers shall work for the workplace which employs him after entry.

However, they are allowed to change workplace if there are legal reasons specified in the Foreign Employment Act.

The reasons are written below

1. The employer terminates during employment period for justifiable reasons or refuses to renew the labor contract after completion of labor contract.
2. The foreign worker cannot continue to work in his/her workplace due to reasons not attributable to him/her, such as closure or temporary shutdown of business.
3. In case the employment permit is canceled pursuant to Article 19(1) or any restriction is imposed on the employment of forien workers pursuant to Article 20(1)
•4. In case working conditions are completely different from the terms of the labor contract or employment relations are deemed impossible to be maintained by social norms due to employer's unfair treatment including violation of working conditions;
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•5. In case it is deemed inapporopriate for a foreign worker to continue his/her work in the business or workplace due to an accidents, etc but he/she can continue to work in a difficult workplace or business

So, According to old EPS, for the first three year sojourn period, the workers may change workplace up to three times and after reemployment, for the second three year sojourn period, the workers may change workplace up to 3 times.

However, According to revised EPS, for the first three year sojourn period, the workers may change workplace up to three times and after reemployment, for the second sojourn period( less than 1 years and 10 months), the workers may change workplace up to 2 times.

And Under the revised Act, "In case it is deemed impossible to continue to work in the current workplace due to business suspension, closure, and other reasons not attributable to the worker", the changing of workplace is excluded in the counting the number of workplace changes.

We hope that this counseling will facilitate your understanding on revised EPS.

We would like to inform you of the number of workplace changes related to Article 25(1)2 of the Revised Act as follows:



According to the Revised Act of 25(1)2(business suspension, closure, and other reasons not attributable to the worker) of the Act on Foreign Workers' Employment, etc., if a worker has to change his/her workplace as from Dec 10. 2009 due to the aforementioned reasons, this change shall not be counted as the number of workplace change.



Here, "Business suspension, closure, and other reasons not attributable to the worker" means Retirement due to reasons attrubutable to an employers such as "a long period of business suspension/ suspension from office, closure, bankruptcy decision, dismissal by managerial reasons, completition of construction, etc, a case that an employer who made a labor contract does not bring a foreign worker who has completed the foreign worker employment training course after his entry, unpaid or overdue wage, sexual harassment or assault, an act of violence or habitual abusive language, and a violation of Labor related laws"



And in case of workplace changes done due to the above reason before revision of this Act, they will also not be included in the number of workplace change.



Regarding workplace changes done before the Revision of the relevant Act, in principle, reason for workplace change cannot be corrected. However, if an employer and an employee both want to correct the reason for workplace change, only one time application of correction shall be allowed.



Namely, for example, in case of a worker who changed workplaces 3 times due to reasons attributable to his/her before revision of this Act, if all actual reasons fall under Act of 25(1)2, the worker can apply for correction of the reasons up to 3 reasons at one time application.