VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnamese workers in South Korea will not have their deposits of VND100 million returned if they overstay visas to work illegally there. However, it is found out that the fine is not strict enough to deter overseas worker from fleeing.

Illustrative image. – File photo

Choi Byung Gie, general director of EPS Vietnam tasked with issuing work permits for guest-workers in South Korea, said the fine failed to bring home those laborers joining EPS programs after contract expiration.

Many localities have reported the average monthly wage of laborers in South Korea from US$1,000 to US$2,000, or three to five times more than a laborer can earn at home.

Therefore, by working for only three months, the laborer could easily earn a sum equal to the deposit, Choi said at a seminar on this issue organized by Vietnam’s Ministry of Labor on Tuesday.

Choi added that Vietnam started sending laborers to South Korea in 2004 under agreements between the two governments, but many ignorant workers are still cheated by unscrupulous agencies to pay ten times more than the actual fee.

To make up for the expensive fees spent, workers tend to overstay their visas in South Korea.

Statistics updated to February 2014 from EPS show as many as 16,000 Vietnamese workers are staying and working illegally in South Korea out of the total number of 40,000 sent there under the EPS program.

Deputy Minister of Labor Nguyen Thanh Hoa said if the illegal overstaying of laborers continues in the next 6 to 12 months, the Ministry of Labor would ban localities with fleeing workers from sending more laborers abroad. “There are about ten localities under scrutiny now,” he claimed.

However, the deposit will not be raised higher than VND100 million since the poor would not be able to afford such an expensive fee.

In August 2012, up to 57% of Vietnamese guest workers stay in South Korea illegally. Thank to the tight and strict regulation on sanctions from both governments, the proportion had decreased to only 40% one year later.

Since 2004, Vietnam has sent 74,000 workers to South Korea, and these guest workers remit home around US$700 million each year.    

Source: SGT