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Video Description

Type: KIHASA Policy Featurette

Topic: Are Migrant Workers Covered by the Four Major Insurances?

Guest Speaker: Dr. Kim Ki-tae, Head, Center for Welfare State Research, KIHASA

Transcript

Voiceover:

Let’s take a look at the reality of social rights protection for migrant workers in Korea.

Kim:

The National Pension and National Health Insurance are primarily designed for Korean citizens and do not, in principle, extend benefits to migrants. On the other hand, both Employment Insurance and Workers’ Compensation Insurance are available to any foreign nationals as long as they are formally employed. For most visa holders with different types of residence status, employment insurance coverage is optional, meaning, to receive coverage, both the employer and the worker must apply jointly.

If a migrant worker wishes to extend their employment beyond three years, up to a total of four years and ten months, they must obtain a recommendation from their employer. However, this requirement can be exploited by employers as leverage to make unfair demands on migrant workers, which often results in these workers being excluded from Employment Insurance benefits. In fact, more than half of ethnic Koreans from China and other migrants working under the Visit and Work visa do not receive unemployment benefits through Employment Insurance.