South Korea’s expansion of foreign workers’ employment permit system is the largest in history.

　　BEIJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) According to the Korean National Daily, the South Korean government held a meeting on the 27th. In 2024, the number of foreign workers who entered Korea under the employment permit system was determined to be 165,000, a record high.

　　With regard to the substantial expansion of the employment quota of foreign manpower in 2024, the South Korean government explained that structural factors such as the reduction of the production population still exist. Under this circumstance, there is a persistent (allowed) requirement to hire foreign manpower centered on some service industries with a high proportion of vacant posts.

　　According to the report, the scope of enterprises where foreign workers can work will also be expanded to catering, forestry and mining. The Korean labor circle criticized that this is a policy that does not consider the protection of foreign workers’ treatment and the impact on the Korean domestic labor market.

　　On the same day, the Korea Federation of Trade Unions said that it would urge the government to stop promoting some hasty policies, including policies affecting the domestic labor market, not discussing with the labor sector in related industries, not evaluating the existing permitted industries, and not improving the direction.