Most Small Businesses Rely on Foreign Labor

Most small and medium-sized manufacturer firms in Korea are dependent on foreign workers due to difficulties getting Koreans to work for them.

According to a survey of 1,000 small manufacturers by the Korea Federation of SMEs, nine out of 10 said they hire foreign workers as Koreans refuse to take the jobs. This is up 14.9 percent compared to last year.

The productivity of foreign workers with less than three months of employment is only about half that of Koreans. But their productivity increases to over 90 percent with more than three years of experience.

When it comes to hiring foreign workers, 39.2 percent of the companies said they consider workers' country of origin the most important thing, followed by Korean language proficiency, physical condition such as height and weight and only then their technical skills.