Korea stops welcoming Vietnamese labor
South Korea is considering on whether to hire Vietnamese workers further or not, because many Vietnamese workers did not return home after the labor contracts end, said the chief of the Department for Management of Overseas Labor, Nguyen Ngoc Quynh.
The two biggest problems with Vietnamese workers in South Korea include: they change their jobs very often, and illegally stay in the host country after their labor contracts end.
The latest case happened recently when 22 Vietnamese workers ran away right after they fulfilled the entrance formalities at the airport. Most of these workers come from the central province of Ha Tinh. Because of this case, South Korea canceled the Korean language test on August 7.
Jung Jin Yuong, Director of the Vietnam-based Korean Center for Human Resource Development, said that in March 2011, South Korea informed Vietnam of the increase of illegally –resided Vietnamese workers in Korea.
In April 2011, Vietnam sent a working group to Korea. Returning to Vietnam, these experts designed a project to prevent Vietnamese workers from illegally residing in Korea. A workshop was held on this matter.
Korean employers still want to recruit Vietnamese workers, so the Korean Ministry of Employment and Labor is considering organizing the Korean language test or not.
Deputy Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, Nguyen Thanh Hoa has asked Ha Tinh province to cancel recruiting workers from the three districts of Nghi Xuan, Ky Anh and Cam Xuyen for the manpower exporting project to Korea because many workers from these districts now illegally reside in Korea.
Quynh from the Department for Management of Overseas Labor, said that if South Korea stops welcoming Vietnamese labor, thousands of Vietnamese workers will be hit by the decision.
According to the Korean Ministry of Employment and Job, of the total 60,000 Vietnamese workers, 8,150 are residing illegally in this country, account for 14.8 percent. This is the highest number among countries that export their manpower to South Korea (China with 5,100 people, the Philippines 4,958,
Indonesia 3,728, Mongolia 3,515 and Thailand 3,216).
The rate of Vietnamese workers who asked for changing jobs is also high, around 32 percent. More seriously, the number of Vietnamese workers who ran away immediately after entering Korea is rising.
The Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs has reported to the government about the situation. Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan worried that if Vietnam cannot deal with run-away workers, the opportunity for Vietnamese workers in this country will be narrowed. Korea can also cancel its labor
agreement with Vietnam.
The Ministry sent a working group to Korea to exchange ideas and finalize the project to prevent Vietnamese workers from illegally residing in Korea. The Ministry said that it will change the way of selecting workers.
Vietnam has exported its manpower under Korea’s EPS program for six years. Vietnamese workers account for 25 percent of the total number of foreign workers from 15 countries in Korea. Vietnamese workers in Korea annually send home.
