"Returning to My Homeland. I'll Come Back Next Year!" ... Departure of 'Foreign Seasonal Workers' Invited by Marriage Immigrant Families

Gyeongbuk Yeongyang-gun Helps Solve Labor Shortage During Farming Season

Departure of foreign seasonal workers invited as family members of marriage immigrants.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Gwiyeol] Yeongyang-gun, Gyeongbuk Province, announced that 23 foreign seasonal workers, who are family members within the fourth degree of kinship of marriage immigrants who entered the country on August 4 this year, have completed this year's project and departed for their home countries on November 1.

Yeongyang-gun introduced foreign seasonal workers composed of family and relatives within the fourth degree of kinship of marriage immigrants for the first time this year in collaboration with the Yeongyang-gun Multicultural Family Support Center to resolve labor shortages and support the stable settlement of multicultural families residing in the county.

The method of inviting marriage immigrant families involves complicated document preparation and difficulties in managing entry and exit due to workers being distributed across various countries and regions, making the procedure more complex compared to the MOU introduction method. Therefore, after reviewing the project until last year, it was implemented for the first time this year.

Mr. Lee from Daecheon-ri, who participated in the project, said, "It was difficult to find labor during the busy farming season, but the county brought in my wife's younger brother and his wife, which solved the labor shortage. Also, since we only provide economic support as compensation for labor, seeing my wife so happy makes me even prouder," expressing his repeated gratitude.

NGUYEN VAN DU, a seasonal worker departing this time, said, "Due to COVID-19, I couldn't meet my older sister for several years, so I was disappointed. I am very happy to be able to work at my sister's house and earn money like this, and I definitely want to come back next year."

County Governor Oh Do-chang said, "The foreign seasonal worker project greatly helps solve labor shortages during the busy farming season. In particular, inviting foreign seasonal workers who are family members of marriage immigrants not only solves labor issues during the busy season but also contributes to the stable domestic settlement of multicultural families. We will continue to expand and promote this project in the future."

The county said that this year, due to delays in the foreign seasonal worker project caused by COVID-19, the project was conducted with a C-4 visa (within 90 days), but next year, seasonal workers invited as family members of marriage immigrants will be promoted with an E-8 visa allowing a stay of 150 days, and the number of introduced workers will be further expanded.

In Yeongyang-gun, 285 foreign seasonal workers entered the country in three rounds starting from early August this year, and after completing this year's project, all workers are scheduled to depart sequentially from November 1 to November 11.

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