[Inside Chodong] Wages for Filipino Domestic Workers: Discussions Must Reflect National Dignity

The 'appropriate wages' for foreign domestic workers who will be responsible for elderly care in South Korea, following childcare, have been a subject of controversy day after day. Since the full-scale service for ordinary households is set to begin in five days, the current situation also indicates a lack of sufficient deliberation.

Although this is a pilot service scheduled until February next year, looking at the current situation, doubts arise as to whether our country, facing a national population crisis, is prepared to implement a proper immigration policy. In the pilot project that brought in 100 workers, differing voices are coming not only from the government and local governments but also from the political sphere, making social integration?the final stage of immigration policy?seem even more distant.

The main issue is wages. To participate in the current foreign domestic worker pilot project, a payment of 2.38 million KRW per month is required based on a 5-day workweek and 8 hours per day. However, the application of the minimum wage is inevitable, raising ongoing concerns about high costs. Considering that the average monthly household income in the fourth quarter of last year was just over 5 million KRW, this means paying about half of a typical household income.

Those who want to make foreign workers the saviors of Korea’s low birthrate and aging population point out the high cost issue. They argue that if this problem is not resolved, introducing overseas labor will be nothing but a pipe dream. Since the wages are 3 to 4 times higher than those in Hong Kong or Singapore, where private contracts are allowed, the logic is that lowering the threshold here would allow more households to benefit.

Looking at the fact that over 30% of the households selected to use the Filipino domestic service, which had a competition ratio of 5 to 1, reside in the three Gangnam districts (Gangnam, Seocho, and Songpa), the criticism that this will become a care service for some wealthy classes is not unfounded. For ordinary dual-income families, it is difficult to maintain both the original purpose of expanding caregivers’ choices and the sustainability of the service.

However, it is embarrassing to see a situation where professional personnel, certified by the Philippine government with caregiving qualifications and having passed English and Korean language proficiency tests, are brought in and then forced to fight over the application of minimum wage and differential wages. Although the current 100 workers have completed contracts based on the minimum wage, the situation, which seems to openly prepare for discrimination, may lead these workers to choose a country other than Korea next time.

Even if differential wages are applied, the wages are still higher compared to those in Hong Kong or Singapore, so the claim that 'this is not labor exploitation' is surprising. A discriminatory approach at the initial stage of introducing foreign workers could lead to differential wages by industry and region, threatening the minimum wage system itself.

Because this has become a controversial issue without preparation, the situation where only the options of 'minimum wage' and 'differential wage' remain is all the more regrettable. The method of using private contracts where individual households directly employ foreigners is only now being discussed. If a way to circumvent even the International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions had been discussed earlier in connection with long-term immigration policies, more advanced steps might have been taken.

If the logic that foreigners from low-income countries should accept low wages spreads, it will be difficult to take the first step in establishing national immigration policy. When Hwang Kyo-ahn, then leader of the Liberty Korea Party (predecessor of the People Power Party), proposed differential minimum wages for foreigners in 2019, saying "foreigners have contributed nothing to our country," those who criticized this as a 'foolish remark' were former German miners and nurses.

Since the current division arose from political logic trying to preempt timely policies without deliberation, a meticulous review starting from the pilot project and a step-by-step approach are necessary. A proper understanding of the childcare market, which is treated as non-professional despite high-intensity labor, is also required. Based on this, it is time for discussions that treat these workers in a manner befitting the national dignity and status. / Social Affairs Department, Deputy Chief Reporter Bae Gyeong-hwan

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