(Muan=Yonhap News) Reporter Hyeong Min-woo = Jeonnam Province announced on the 28th that it will expand its residential stability support project to improve living conditions for foreign seasonal workers and to resolve labor shortages during the agricultural busy season.
Jeonnam Province will support the construction and renovation of 15 facilities for foreign seasonal workers' accommodations this year.
Next year, the province plans to build additional accommodations in three locations, including Jindo, with a budget of 2.5 billion won, including government funds.
This year, Jeonnam Province has been allocated the largest number of foreign seasonal workers in the agricultural sector nationwide, at 15,250.
As of October, over 9,000 have entered the country, and more are expected to enter in the second half of the year for tasks such as harvesting cabbage and radishes, and planting garlic and onions.
To protect the human rights of the increasing number of foreign seasonal workers each year, Jeonnam Province is conducting quarterly surveys to check on their human rights and living conditions.
The province also plans to centralize support for key procedures such as the entry and mandatory education of seasonal workers through a metropolitan support center to improve administrative inefficiency.
Kim Hyun-mi, head of the Agricultural Policy Division at Jeonnam Province, said, "The aging population in rural areas and rising labor costs are threatening the sustainability of agriculture and rural communities," and added, "Since foreign seasonal workers are essential labor in rural areas, we will do our best to expand accommodations and improve their treatment to create a sustainable labor supply system."