The Seoul city government noted on the 4th that it has decided to extend the ‘Philippine domestic helper’ pilot program period by one year. Of the 100 Philippine domestic helpers who initially entered the country, 89 will remain in Seoul and renegotiate their contracts. Among the remaining 11, two were sent back after leaving their accommodation early, and nine returned home without renegotiating.
The Seoul city government started the Philippine domestic helper pilot program in September last year. It planned to conduct the pilot program until February this year together with the Ministry of Employment and Labor and then expand it to other municipalities. However, due to a low number of applications for participation from other municipalities, the Seoul city government decided to extend the pilot program only until February of next year.
As a result, 89 Philippine domestic helpers signed renegotiated contracts to work in 148 households in Seoul starting this month. Among the 185 households that used Philippine domestic helpers last month, 135 extended their usage. Additionally, 13 households decided to start using Philippine domestic helpers from this month. Of the 148 households utilizing Philippine domestic helpers, 44% are located in the so-called ‘Gangnam three districts,’ such as Gangnam-gu, Seocho-gu, and Songpa-gu.
The user fee for Philippine domestic helpers increased this month from 13,940 won to 16,800 won per hour. If working 40 hours a week, the monthly fee will rise from 2.42 million won to 2.92 million won. This amount includes the minimum wage, weekly holiday allowance, four major insurances, and operational costs for domestic helpers. The hourly fee remains the same even when caring for two children in a household.
Starting this month, Philippine domestic helpers can freely choose their accommodation. Previously, they resided in designated accommodations in Gangnam's Yeoksam-dong. However, there have been suggestions to move to areas with lower rent. Among the 89 Philippine domestic helpers, 56 have moved to new accommodations, while 33 continue to use their existing accommodations.