S. Korea increases employment quota for citizens of Uzbekistan

The quota for employment of Uzbek citizens in the Republic of Korea has been increased to 3,200 people per year, the press service of the Ministry of Employment and Labor Relations of Uzbekistan reported.

“The Ministry of Employment and Labor of the Republic of Korea, following the results of the work done in 2018, highly appreciated the activities of the Ministry of Employment and Labor Relations of the Republic of Uzbekistan. In this regard, it increased the quota for 2019 to 3,200 people,” the report says.

Last year, that number was 3,100.

According to the Ministry of Labor, to ensure the full implementation of the quota provided, it is planned to create a register of 4,980 applicants, of which 4,800 are specialized in the industry and 180 in the services sector. 3,200 people from this registry will get jobs in Korea.

The ministry recalled that on August 16, 2003, the Law on Employment of Foreign Citizens was adopted in the Republic of Korea, according to which, in 2004, along with the system of industrial education for immigrants, the Employment Permit System (open recruitment) was introduced. As of 2018, 16 countries, including Uzbekistan, are members of this system.

Under this system, the equal rights and guarantees provided for by the labor laws of Korea are granted to a foreign worker on a par with the Korean workers.

A key factor in the system of “open recruitment” is that the Korean government regulates the process of attracting foreign workers, and the selection of the workers themselves is carried out directly only by Korean employers, the ministry’s press service added.