A special program in Gangwon Province's Hwacheon-gun
Hwacheon-gun in Gangwon Province will launch a program to recruit seasonal agricultural workers from the home-country families and relatives of foreign nationals who have settled in the county through marriage.
The county announced Thursday that it will accept applications through Nov. 18 from family members residing abroad of marriage migrants who are registered and actually living in Hwacheon-gun.
The program is expected to reduce worker dropouts, ease workplace cooperation, speed up job adaptation, improve skill levels through family cohesion and help ensure workers' diligence.
From the workers' perspective, having a family member nearby can ease loneliness and provide a sense of security, giving them someone to turn to if they feel they are being treated unfairly.
The arrangement is seen as a win for the migrant spouse who has come to Korea, as well as for local employers.
Applications can be submitted at the industrial affairs division of each township and village office. The planned recruitment target is 517 workers, though the final number may change depending on allocations from the Ministry of Justice.
Each marriage migrant household may invite up to 10 relatives from their home country. Eligible invitees must be family members residing abroad between the ages of 19 and 55. Those who receive a re-entry recommendation from an employer may participate without age restrictions.
First priority goes to the marriage migrant's parents, siblings and their spouses residing in the home country; second priority goes to relatives within the fourth degree of kinship and their spouses.
Wages must be at or above next year's minimum wage of 10,700 won ($8) per hour, with a standard workday of eight hours. Accommodation and meals are in principle provided by the employing farm, though it is also possible for the invited family member to arrange lodging for the seasonal worker.
Farm assignments will give priority to farms that employed seasonal workers the previous year when both the farm and the worker wish to renew their contract. Workers who performed diligently in the previous year's program may also receive priority placement at a farm upon reapplication.
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