Migrant workers wait in line at bus stops upon arriving at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, on July 7, 2022, as they entered the country under the work permit system amid eased quarantine rules. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, July 31 (Korea Bizwire) — About 100 foreign domestic workers from the Philippines and other countries will be allowed to work in Seoul later this year in a pilot project to test the import of domestic helpers amid a dwindling number of locals willing to work as maids, the labor ministry said Monday.
The ministry unveiled the plan during a public hearing on the proposal to import foreign domestic workers as part of efforts to address shortages of people willing to work as maids, tackle the low birth rate and help women continue with their careers.
“In a situation where the local workforce in the sector is shrinking and is aging seriously, demands are growing for using foreign workers to cope with the low birth rate and to prevent women’s career discontinuity,” Lee Sang-im, a labor ministry official, said during the hearing.
Under the pilot project, 100 people from mostly Southeast Asian countries, including the Philippines, will provide housekeeping and infant care services for at least six months.
Priority will be given to households with both husbands and wives working, single-parent families or households with pregnant women.
State-authorized employment agencies will first hire foreign domestic workers with E-9 visas and place them in households. They will be paid at least the legal minimum wage just like local workers, officials said.
Countries under consideration are those issuing licenses for domestic workers, such as the Philippines, where people are allowed to work as domestic workers in foreign countries after undergoing six months of training at vocational training centers.
The government will check the backgrounds of foreign workers, such as their career and criminal records, as well as their Korean- or English-language abilities.
Those with criminal records, mental diseases or drug problems will be screened out.
After or before entering the country, they will receive training in Korean language, culture and labor law. Before placement in households, they will also be given training about child abuse prevention and safety regulations.
A public hearing on the pilot project to bring foreign domestic workers to help with housekeeping and care work is held in Royal Hotel Seoul on July 31, 2023. (Yonhap)
The ministry said there is rising demand to utilize foreign workers to prevent the career discontinuity of women, and lessen the financial burden in hiring local care service workers, who charge about 15,000 won (US$11.8) per hour in cases where they commute to work, which is more than the minimum wage.
The number of local domestic helpers has gradually shrunk, and 92.3 percent of them are aged over 50, the ministry added.
Domestic workers who reside in their employer’s home while providing housekeeping or care work charge about 3.5 to 4.5 million won per month.
The government plans to start providing the service starting in the latter half of 2023, after conducting an analysis on the performance of the pilot project.
(Yonhap)
