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Mar. 29  2024
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Not the Best, Way to Voluntary Reporting

Migrant support organisations, including FWR, and undocumented migrant workers have exposed the injustice of the government's policy on migrant workers by rejecting the voluntary reporting program so far. However, we realised that we are faced with a difficult situation.

Source  :  Asian Workers News No. 129 (May 5, 2002)

Migrant support organisations, including FWR, and undocumented migrant workers have exposed the injustice of the government's policy on migrant workers by rejecting the voluntary reporting program so far. However, we realised that we are faced with a difficult situation.

The Ministry of Justice(MOJ) now says the guarantee signature of a migrant worker's employer is not needed, due to strong opposition from undocumented workers and company owners. Undocumented Chosunjok (Korean-Chinese) who went on a hunger strike against the voluntary reporting program, also changed their position and decided to register after the MOJ promised to take complementary measures for Chosunjok through the new 'Act on Overseas Koreans'. For this reason, many undocumented workers, including 80,000 undocumented Chosunjok, are queuing at the Immigration Office for registration.

In this situation, we couldn't persuade undocumented workers to keep rejecting registration, in spite of the many problems and contradictions in the government's policy. Therefore, we suggest all migrant workers resister first, but continue their struggle for migrant workers rights. We think this is a alternative plan.

¢À Some information and advice on voluntary reporting:

-You can resister without an employer's signature for deportation guarantee. However, you must include your companys information, such as its name, address and telephone number. Though it is possible to omit company information, a person who does this cant work.

-You can't transfer to another company after registering. Therefore, you need to find a better company to work for before you resister if your present company has problems like not paying salary or violating human rights. At the same time, you'll need to actively deal with the violation of your rights by the registered company employer.

-Before registering, you should buy an air ticket with a return date of no later than March 31, 2003. Permission for departure will be postponed until the date of return on the air ticket. Asiana Airlines and Korean Airlines announced they wouldn't give a refund after a ticket is purchased. Therefore, please check whether or not the airline will refund your air ticket before you buy it.

-In the case of voluntary reporting, its possible to register your passport to be kept in district Immigration Offices. You don't need go to the Immigration Head Office to get your passport because an Immigration official will handle it for you.

-A trainee who leaves her/his training company after March 12 is not covered by the 'Voluntary Reporting Program' can only depart without penalty before May 25 this year.

-A person who doesn't have his/her passport, due to it being kept at the Immigration Office, can get his/her passport by visiting the Immigration Office directly and before registering. You can check which Immigration Office has your passport on the phone before you visit. (You will need to quote your name, passport number and date of birth.) The Immigration Office telephone number is on the bottom of you ID card.


¢À Problems with the government's policy:
1. Its obvious that the governments new policy will not fundamentally solve the problems undocumented workers have, and will fail because they are keeping the Industrial Trainee System. The 'Voluntary Reporting Program' is just a deportation policy.

2. Most migrant workers have paid high brokerage costs to enter Korea, but are paid so little; they are unable to cover the fee in their first year of working here. Therefore, many migrant workers are against to the unrealistic new program.

3. Even if they do register, he/she can't transfer to another company, even if conditions in the company worsen or it closes down, so a migrant worker needs to foresee human rights violations. There is no choice for him/her but to return to his/her home country.

¢À For these reasons, the Korean government needs to fundamentally change their viewpoint:

1. The basic direction of the policy on undocumented migrant workers has to have a positive view that would give them work with legal status and a work visa.

2. As most undocumented migrant workers are accustomed to Korean society and language, its reasonable for the labour market system to take advantage of the fact if we legalise their residency status. The new system should also be applied to voluntary reporters.

3. The Industrial Trainee System must be abolished. The Supreme Court has already recognised that trainees have labour rights. To maintain the Trainee System without a training program and not admit migrant workers are workers, will be criticised by international society.

4. To prevent violation of human rights, we recommend co-operated association between migrant support organisations and government officers.

After registering, raise another objection to the government's policy and struggle to achieve your labour rights. Moreover, you should try to solve problems, such as unpaid salary or any human rights violations inside the work place during the period for postponement of voluntary departure. It is also better for solving unpaid salary, depositing of money in the trainee company and your retirement allowance, which were difficult problems to demand with 'illegal' status.
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