Hiring them as maids or nannies, a program initiated by Seoul City Mayor Oh Se-hoon, aims to relieve difficulties faced by young couples who struggle to balance childcare and household chores as well as encouraging them to have more babies.
Initially planned for 2023, the program faced delays due to extended negotiations with the Filipino government, but both sides finally reached an agreement earlier this year, under the condition that only Filipino workers with childcare certificates from the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority of the Philippines would be eligible.
According to the ministry, 100 Filipinos will arrive in Korea with E-9 visas for unskilled laborers and undergo a four-week training in the second week of August. The training includes work-related skills, Korean language, and culture, to help them adapt to their new environment.
They will stay in dormitory rooms during training and will be assigned to their new workplaces in September. The Seoul Metropolitan Government will begin accepting applications from families seeking to hire a foreign housekeeper, with selection based on the urgency of their childcare needs.
They will be paid at least 9,860 won an hour and will be able to work more than 30 hours a week.
But debates have already arisen over the wages for them, with some complaining that the cost is too high. Oh said that in cities like Hong Kong and Singapore, employing Filipino domestic workers costs around 1 million won per month, but it costs approximately 2 million won per month here due to Korea's minimum wage requirements.
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
