Foreign Workers in South Korea Continuing to Decrease

The numbers of foreigners and foreign employees in South Korea are continuing to decrease in the wake of COVID-19. The foreign workers’ wages are rising with demand for them not falling. The individual monthly wage of about one-third of them is three million won or more.

Statistics Korea announced on Dec. 20 that a total of 1,302,000 foreigners aged 15 or older were staying in South Korea in May this year, down 2.2 percent from a year ago. The number of foreigners working in South Korea fell 1.4 percent to 843,000 in that period.

When it comes to those foreign workers, the number of Korean Chinese decreased 2.7 percent to 331,000. By purpose of stay, work and visit (H-2 visa) decreased 23.6 percent (22,000 persons) and non-professional employment (E-9) decreased 3.2 percent (7,000). The number of foreign students in South Korea decreased 17 percent (6,000), too.

The number of foreign workers with a monthly wage of at least three million won was 238,600 in May, 30.1 percent of the total and up 61,200 year on year. Their ratio to the total rose from 21.9 percent in one year. The average monthly wage of 51.1 percent was two million won to less than three million. One million to less than two million accounted for 15 percent and less than one million accounted for 3.8 percent.