Immigration To South Korea - Migrant Laborers

Migrant Laborers

Korea used to be a migrant source country, sending farmers, miners, nurses, and workers to the U.S., Germany, and the Middle East. The Korean diaspora population around the world numbers 6.82 million as of 2009, including 2.34 million in China and 2.1 million in the United States. This represented a slight decline of 0.22 million since 2007.

Korea experienced government initiated rapid economic growth from the 1970s which has been called ‘the Miracle on the Han River’. Until the end of 1980s, Korea was able to sustain its development without foreign laborers because it had enough cheap laborers. However, from the 1990s, Korea's decreasing birth rate and growing cost of labor caused labor shortages especially in the 3D jobs (Dirty, Dangerous and Difficult).

With economic development and urbanization, many people left rural areas. Young people headed for the city in search of better jobs and living conditions. As a tradition in the agrarian and Confucian society, the eldest son stayed behind in the countryside with their parents. Koreans began to see a chronic shortage of marriageable women in rural area, and thus international marriage started in rural areas to fill the demand. Most international marriage cases are handled by dating service companies that earn a commission.

Many migrant workers live in Korea, particularly in the industrial suburbs of Gyeonggi province such as Siheung city. The largest number come from China. Of a total of 55,154 D-3 visa holders in 2005, 17,787 were from China, but others come from throughout South and Southeast Asia.