SEOUL, 16 March 2016 - Philippine Ambassador to Korea Raul S. Hernandez met with Minister of Employment and Labor Lee Ki-kweon on Wednesday, 16 March 2016 at the Korea Press Center in Seoul’s Jung-gu central district to discuss the implementation of a comprehensive sending system monitoring program for foreign workers in South Korea.

At the annual meeting with Chiefs of Mission of labor-sending countries under the Employment Permit System (EPS), Minister Lee presented the current implementation status and achievements of EPS, in particular the higher transparency, more fair sending process, improved rights and interests of workers, and the reduction in social costs. After the presentation, the ambassadors expressed their views to Minister Lee on the need for sending countries to come up with government-level measures to address the concern over workers staying or working illegally in Korea, and to come up with measures to improve the foreign worker selection method to make it more responsive to the needs of Korean firms. Ambassador Hernandez suggested to amend or improve the re-entry law for the sincere worker allowing his return to his employer provided the latter is willing to take him back. "The bond between the employer and the worker is a relationship that has gone through time and nurture," he said. "It is a relationship that can be viewed as a long-term investment." Allowing the sincere foreign worker to return to his employer, Ambassador Hernandez added, "leads to greater or enhanced productivity and is beneficial not only to the parties involved but to the Korean economy as well." He also asked about amending the entry requirements for volunteer returnees to make them similar to those granted to sincere workers. Another proposal raised by Ambassador Hernandez for the Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) to consider was raising the age limit for foreign workers to 45 years old from the current ceiling of 38 for both new entrants and voluntary returnees, which could avert the incidence of overstaying. In thanking the Philippine ambassador for his "valuable suggestions," Minister Lee said MOEL will consider these as inputs in re-assessing the EPS law. The other participants also discussed the possibility for MOEL to re-evaluate the selection criteria, which would also give credence to the foreign worker's skills and work experience, in effect expanding it from what is currently the main requirement: passing the EPS Test for Proficiency in Korean (TOPIK), the government-authorized language proficiency exam. Minister Lee spoke highly of the employment system, saying that EPS has gone beyond "simply being a system of bringing foreign workers into Korea" as it is now "serving as a stepping stone towards consolidating friendly and cooperative relations between Korea and EPS-sending countries." Minister Lee stressed that the meeting shall provide the opportunity to further promote international cooperation not only in the EPS but also in sharing Korea's experience in economic growth and human resources development with other Asian countries. The Philippines currently ranks fourth among the original 15 EPS-sending countries with the largest number of workers. As of January 2016, there are about 25,421 who are working for around 6,600 small and medium enterprises in Korea.