'Breathing Room During Busy Farming Season' Over 5,000 Foreign Workers in Agriculture and Livestock Granted Extended Stay and Employment

[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Kim Hyewon] As the government decided to extend the stay and employment period of foreign workers by one year, about 5,000 workers in the agriculture and livestock sector were also included in the target group.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced on the 28th that, according to the written review results of the 33rd Foreign Workforce Policy Committee, 5,315 foreign workers in the agriculture and livestock sector whose stay and employment period initially expires will be able to work for one more year from the 13th of next month until the end of the year.

To minimize the shortage of labor during the busy farming season, when labor demand increases significantly from April, the employment period of 2,375 foreign workers who received a one-year extension last year and whose period ends between the 13th of next month and June 30th was also extended by 50 days.

Foreign workers who previously received a one-year extension are generally required to leave the country without additional extension according to the short-term rotation principle of the Employment Permit System. However, considering the possibility that the COVID-19 situation may continue until the first half of this year and concerns about labor shortages in rural areas during the busy farming season, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs explained that they are pursuing additional extensions within the scope allowed by related regulations.

The number of foreign workers (E-9) employed under the Employment Permit System in the agriculture and livestock sector, which had been continuously decreasing since 2020, has turned to a slight increase since January this year. The number of arrivals this year also reached 1,034 as of the 18th, which is more than half of the total arrivals for the entire last year.

Additionally, 11,472 foreign seasonal workers who can be employed during the concentrated period of agricultural labor demand (3 to 5 months) were allocated to 86 local governments. Compared to last year, the conditions for introduction have generally improved, such as better international flight operations and eased quarantine requirements, and they are scheduled to arrive sequentially from April, the beginning of the full-scale farming season.

Lee Deokmin, Director of the Management Workforce Division at the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, stated, "Along with the expanded supply of foreign workers compared to last year, we plan to expand domestic labor supply support such as rural labor brokerage centers and stay-type farming work teams, and strengthen on-site monitoring of labor supply and demand to respond seamlessly to labor supply during the busy farming season."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.