Beware of fake recruitment via e-mails
You are selected!

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration advises jobseekers to
think twice before replying to e-mails with the said subject especially those
coming from “international companies” they have never heard of before.
Administrator Hans Leo Cacdac said an e-mail congratulating an applicant for
being selected for a specific job he or she did not apply for reeks of a
recruitment scam.

“When you post your resume to a job search site, you are opening your
personal data to potential employers, and even scammers, so be careful,”
Cacdac added.

The administrator said these e-mails promise employment in hospitals and
caregiving establishments in Canada and the U.S.A. at almost no cost to the
applicant but they have to pay for medical tests and interview coaching in the
Philippines.

Cacdac cited the case of a certain Fraser Health which recruits nurses and
caregivers for supposed employment in Canada.
Upon verification, the real Fraser Health in Canada denied the e-mail came
from them. The fake company uses free e-mail accounts at hushmail.com
whereas the true Fraser Health uses their domain name fraserhealth.ca.
Cacdac said the come-ons offered by the fake company could be hard to refuse
for some Filipino workers looking for overseas jobs. The e-mail said applicants
would not be charged any placement or processing fee, and the cost of air fare
and work visa would be paid by the employer. But the …

[ Full reading ]

South Korea amends policy on rehiring of foreign workers
February 17, 2012

South Korea recently granted two of the four concerns included in a petition signed
by 2,355 Filipino workers and their 633 Korean employers requesting changes in the
Employment Permit System (EPS) as the Korean Parliament promulgated Act No.
11276 (Revisions on the Act on Employment of Foreign Workers) on February 1,
2012.

Administrator Hans Leo Cacdac said the new law, which will take effect on July
2, 2012, reduced the waiting period of foreign workers who have finished their
contracts and who wish to return to South Korea from six months to three months.
It also allowed the return of the foreign worker to the same employer where
they used to work before departure without having to undergo a Korean language
proficiency test or employment training.

Cacdac also said the Philippine Embassy in South Korea endorsed the petition
to the Ministry of Employment and Labor in March 2011, which was also discussed
during the negotiation for the renewal of the memorandum of understanding on the
Employment Permit System (EPS) between the Philippines and South Korea.
At present, a returning foreign worker who wants to be re-employed under
EPS after completing 4 years and 10 months employment in Korea can apply after a
waiting period of at least six months and is still required to go through another
Korean language test and employment training.

The POEA administrator clarified that the …

[ Full reading ]

Quota of 16,300 foreign workers for second half of this year to be supplied in first half

Feb 9, 2012 The government said that the 16,300 foreign workers scheduled to be supplied in the second half of this year (starting in July) will be supplied in the first half. When the supply of foreign workers allocated for the first half started in January, the agriculture, livestock, construction and fisheries industries used up their quotas on the first day, leaving many workplaces in these industries still unable to get a supply of foreign workers. And the manufacturing sector is expected to exhaust its quota soon. In this situation, the action was taken in order to supply foreign workers when companies need them. The government set the quota for non-professional foreigners (E-9) allowed into Korea this year at 57,000. Of the total, a quota of 46,000 foreigners was allocated between the first and second halves of this year. The remaining quota of 11,000 will be filled with foreign workers re-entering Korea (which will happen on an irregular basis). * Foreign workers re-entering Korea : among foreign workers returning to their home countries after end of their employment period, ① those who have passed the special Korean language test and re-enter Korea six months after their return, and ② those who worked hard in a designated small workplace without a change of workplace while in …

[ Full reading ]

South KOREA LIBERALIZES LAW ON REHIRING OF FOREIGN WORKERS

Philippine Ambassador to Seoul Luis T. Cruz reported to the Department that the Korean Parliament recently adopted measures to ease the rehiring of foreign workers who are about to finish their contracts with Korean SMEs under the Employment Permit System (EPS).

Representative Kang Sung-chun of the ruling Grand National Party, together with nine other parliamentarians, introduced amendments that created Act. No. 11276 (Revision on the Act on Employment of Foreign Workers). It was promulgated on 01 February 2012 and will take effect on 02 July 2012.

The new amendments will reduce the waiting period of foreign workers who wish to return to South Korea after completing their contracts from six months to three months. It will also exempt them from taking the Korean language test and employment training. They should meet however, certain criteria such as no record of transfer during the employment period except for justifiable cause; the sector they were engaged in is still experiencing labor shortage; and a new work contract prior to reentry to South Korea.

On 8 February, Ambassador Cruz, together with diplomats from six other embassies, met Representative Kang to thank him personally for the passage of Act. No. 11276. He recalled that the amendments were two of the four petitions signed by 2,355 OFWs and their 633 Korean employers, requesting changes in the EPS law. He added that the Philippine Embassy positively …

[ Full reading ]

Minimum Wage Council sets 2012 minimum wage per hour


At its 13th meeting held from July 12 at 8 p.m. until July 13 at 1:58 a.m., the Minimum Wage Council (Chairman Park Joon-sung) deliberated on the minimum wage applicable in 2012, and set it at 4,580 won an hour, up 260 won or 6.0% from 4,320 won an hour in 2011.

Next year's hourly minimum wage works out to 957,220 won a month for those working 40 hours a week (209 hours a month).

When deliberating and deciding on the minimum wage this time, the Council gave priority to stabilizing the livelihoods of low-paid workers. For instance, the increase rate was set at a higher level than the previous year's 5.1% considering this year's high price increase.

It also took into account micro, small and medium enterprises' ability to pay wages, including the fact that the proportion of enterprises paying less than this year's minimum wage reached 11.5%.

Unlike previous years, both labor and management submitted almost no minimum wage proposals during this year's deliberation process. So the public interest members suggested a range of minimum wages to promote their negotiation and discussion, and urged both sides to negotiate. But they failed to narrow the difference in their positions.

With the statutory deadline (Jun. 29) having passed, the public interest members made their first proposal on July 1 at the request of both labor and management. For all this, things didn't go smoothly as employers' and workers' members resigned …

[ Full reading ]

Airport Payment Service for Lump-Sum Refund for Foreigner

WHO CAN APPLY

○ A foreigner who is schduled to depart for his own country through Incheon Pirport within a month ○ Airport Payment is possible only in case ex-employer makes a disqualification report to National Pension Service at least one day before the departure date.
※ If you are to dapart from Korea on Saturday, Sunday or Korean legal(official) holiday, you can not apply for Airport Payment. Therefore, you should chooes alternative options such as receiving through domestic account or overseas remittance.
※ Airport Payment is applicable only in case flight's departure time is from 11:00 through 24:00


HOW TO APPLY
○ Select 「Airport Payment」 when you apply for Lump-Sum Refund
○ Applcants should hand in another form of bank account for additional payment in case non-payable reasons happen on the departure date.


HOW TO RECEIVE
① Hand in forms of "Application for Lump-Sum Refund" and "Application for Lump-Sum Refund at the Airport", and then receive a filing receipt : all regional Office of the National Pension Service(except for Airport Office of NPS)
Office hours 09:00~18:00
② Receive the "Receipt of Currency Exchange" and "Direction for Payment of Lump-Sum Refund" from Incheon Airport Office after handing in the filing receipt, passport and flight ticket on the date of daparture
Office hours 09:00~17:00
③ Receive the "Receipt of Currency …

[ Full reading ]