Nepali workers in South Korea would get a pay hike of nearly Rs10,000 per month starting this month.

The Korean government has decided to increase the basic salary of workers for 2023, which came into effect on Sunday.

The South Korean government has fixed the minimum wage at 9,620 won, approximately Rs998, per hour, a five percent increase from 2022.

With the increment, those working 209 hours a month will earn 2,010,580 won (around Rs208,696).

The minimum wage applies equally across all industries.

“The salary of Nepali workers in Korea differs according to their work and the company they work for,” said Pushpa Katuwal, director of the Employment Permit System (EPS) Korea Section under the Department of Foreign Employment. “The minimum basic salary for Nepali workers employed under the Employment Permit System (EPS) in 2022 was around 1.9 million won.”

South Korea has been one of the most lucrative destinations for Nepali migrant workers since the introduction of the Employment Permit System, a government-to-government mechanism, in 2008.

Around 80,000 Nepalis have gone to the East Asian country under the EPS system from 2008 to mid-November 2022, according to government data.

“In the first five months of the current fiscal year beginning mid-July, 8,273 workers went to South Korea from Nepal for manufacturing and agricultural jobs,” said Katuwal.

“Around 19,000 individuals, 16,000 for manufacturing jobs and 3,000 for agricultural jobs, passed the language test in 2022,” Katuwal added. “Around half of those selected for the agricultural jobs and 4,000 for manufacturing works have got their labour contracts issued.”

However, another examination is going to be held for selecting workers for agricultural jobs as the number of successful candidates is less than the quota for the upcoming intake.

“We have received around 37,000 applications for the examinations,” said Katuwal. “The exams will begin from January 29 to enlist 6,000 candidates on the roster from where the Korean employers will pick workers.”

The government recently passed working guidelines to send seasonal workers abroad.

According to the guidelines, the local governments will be able to select and send the workers to foreign cities with which they have a sister city relationship.

Katuwal said that the seasonal workers’ scheme was not under the jurisdiction of the EPS Korea section.

“The individuals going to Korea through EPS are general workers who can work up to four years and 10 months under the E9 visa, while the seasonal workers will go there for up to five months through an E8 visa.”

“The movement of migrant workers to Korea has returned to normal after the hiatus caused by the pandemic,” said Katuwal. “Workers are reaching Korea within two months of the issuance of a labour contract and the VISA certificate.”

Published on: 4 January 2023 | The Kathmandu Post