Philippine caregivers arrive at Incheon Worldwide Airport, Aug. 6, as a part of Korea’s pilot mission to produce overseas caregivers to home households. Joint Press Corps
By Lee Hyo-jin
The Philippine authorities urged Korean authorities to make sure that Filipino caregivers in Seoul obtain the minimal wage, Thursday, stressing that equal remedy underneath Korea’s Overseas Employment Act was a key situation of the bilateral pilot mission.
“The Filipino caregivers are categorised as EPS employees and, as such, are accorded equal remedy together with minimal wage underneath Korea’s Overseas Employment Act. This is a crucial situation of the pilot mission between the Philippines and Korea, which the Korean authorities proposed to the Philippines,” the Philippine authorities instructed The Korea Instances in an announcement.
The Employment Allow System (EPS), operated by the Korean authorities, brings in a gentle variety of overseas employees — primarily from Southeast Asian nations — to fulfill labor demand in industries like agriculture, fishing and manufacturing.
“The caregivers are a talented workforce and got here ready. They’re professionally skilled and licensed as expert caregivers by the Philippine authorities,” it stated, including that an orderly and truthful system of the Filipino caregivers underneath the EPS is a manifestation of the worth that care work is given by each nations.
This assertion, made by way of the Philippine Embassy in Seoul through its Migrant Staff’ Workplace, is seen as a de facto opposition to the Seoul Metropolitan Authorities’s argument that Filipino caregivers must be excluded from the native minimal wage system.
Below the trial program launched by the Seoul Metropolitan Authorities and Korea’s Ministry of Employment and Labor, 100 home helpers from the Philippines, who arrived on Aug. 6, started their duties earlier this week in 142 households throughout the capital. This adopted the completion of their four-week coaching in Seoul.
As per the settlement, the caregivers are assured a minimal wage of 9,860 received ($7.37) per hour, as stipulated in Korea’s Labor Requirements Act. Primarily based on an eight-hour, five-day workweek, the employees ought to earn 2.38 million received per 30 days. The minimal wage will rise to 10,030 received subsequent yr.
However the Seoul mayor expressed issues that this wage may burden households, because the mission goals to offer inexpensive baby care and housekeeping providers amid a decline within the variety of native caregivers.
Throughout a current Nationwide Meeting seminar on Aug. 27, Oh stated, “The overseas home caregiver scheme was meant to handle value points associated to native caregivers, which exacerbated the low birthrate. Nevertheless, the present scheme doesn’t mirror this unique objective.”
Oh additionally in contrast the prices for overseas home caregivers in different areas, noting that in Hong Kong, the associated fee is at the least 830,000 received per 30 days, whereas in Singapore, they’re paid as much as 710,000 received.
Rep. Na Kyung-won of the ruling Individuals Energy Occasion (PPP), who hosted the seminar, supported the notion of differential wage schemes for sure overseas employees.
Seoul has requested that related ministries, together with the Ministry of Labor and the Ministry of Justice, interact in discussions to make sure that the prices of Filipino caregivers’ providers are lowered to what they think about affordable ranges.
