On the 25th, Jeongeup City in Jeonbuk welcomed a group of 20 Filipino seasonal workers to help alleviate the labor shortage in rural areas.
According to the city on the 26th, this arrival is the result of a seasonal worker agreement signed earlier this year between the city and the Philippine city of Magalies.
On the 25th, 20 Filipino seasonal workers who will help alleviate the rural labor shortage entered the country as a group. [Photo by Jeongeup City]
The seasonal workers who arrived as a group underwent drug testing at a hospital and received training on compliance requirements from farm owners and workers. They have been assigned to local farms and will assist with rural labor during the busy farming season for five months.
The foreign seasonal worker system is a legal employment program designed to address labor shortages in rural areas.
Workers enter the country with a long-term employment visa (E-8) status and can be employed for up to three months with possible extensions based on agreements with the farms.
The city received approval from the Ministry of Justice for 532 workers in the first half of this year, and currently, 344 foreign seasonal workers are assigned to farms, helping to ease the shortage of rural labor.
Later this month, about 60 people, including marriage immigrants' families and relatives, are expected to complete the entry process.
The city operates a "Communication Counseling Office" at the Agricultural Technology Center with dedicated language communication assistants to provide grievance counseling and management to prevent cases of human rights violations or unauthorized departures among foreign workers.
Mayor Lee Hak-su stated, “We will continue to actively promote the foreign seasonal worker system to resolve the difficulties faced by farmers experiencing rising labor costs and labor shortages. We will consistently provide human rights education to farm owners and workers and do our best to ensure stable employment through exchanges facilitated by the Communication Counseling Office.”
Jeongeup = Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Kim Jae-gil baekok@asiae.co.kr
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