Hoengseong County Finalizes 1,799 Foreign Seasonal Workers...Direct Response to Labor Shortage

1,689 Farm-Based and 110 Workers at 3 Public-Sector Sites Secured

Second Largest in Gangwon, Top 10 Nationwide...Record-High Scale

Human Rights Protection and Grievance Counseling System Significantly Strengthened

Hoengseong County in Gangwon Province has finalized its intake of foreign seasonal workers for this year at a record-high 1,799 people and will now begin full-scale operations.

Overview of Hoengseong-gun Office. Provided by Hoengseong-gun.

By type, 1,689 workers are assigned to individual farms and 110 workers to three public-sector sites. This is the second-largest number within the Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province and ranks within the top 10 nationwide. It is expected to support a stable production base for local agriculture amid the aging of rural communities and a worsening labor shortage.

Based on its previous operational experience, the county plans to focus this year on "systematic and stable management." It will strengthen its management system starting from the preliminary demand survey stage by verifying whether farms are eligible, guiding them through the preparation of employment contracts, and providing instructions on compliance with standard labor contracts. When workers arrive in Korea, the county will provide detailed training on working conditions, rules for daily life, and grievance-handling procedures.

After workers are assigned, a dedicated team will conduct regular on-site inspections. The county will focus on checking compliance with accommodation standards, working hours and wage payments, and insurance enrollment, and will move quickly to mediate any disputes that arise between farms and workers. In particular, to address difficulties stemming from language and cultural differences at an early stage, it will operate a grievance counseling desk on a permanent basis.

The core of this year’s program goes beyond simply "preventing workers from leaving their workplaces" to focus on "protecting human rights and improving working conditions." The county plans to establish a cooperative system with immigration authorities to share information on entries and departures and to conduct joint inspections, thereby creating a stable working environment within the institutional framework. Through this, it aims to protect workers’ rights and interests while at the same time minimizing uncertainty for farms in managing their labor force.

Meanwhile, in relation to the public-sector seasonal worker program, one site at Anheung Nonghyup (30 workers) is awaiting additional selection review by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. If approved, the total number of workers to be brought in is expected to increase to 1,829.

Jeong Soon-gil, head of the county’s Agricultural Policy Division, said, "Due to the aging of rural areas, demand is expected to reach up to more than 2,500 workers in the future," adding, "We will continue to provide administrative support to enhance the efficiency and stability of the program, rather than merely increasing the number of workers."

He added, "We will do our best to establish an operational model that balances the protection of workers’ human rights with support for farms."