With the existing workforce aging and few newcomers entering, foreign slaughter technicians with professional qualifications will be deployed to domestic slaughterhouses that suffer from a chronic labor shortage.
The Ministry of Justice said on the 14th that 15 foreign slaughter technicians entered the country after receiving slaughter worker visas under the general skilled worker category (E-7-3).
The slaughter industry has repeatedly called for bringing in skilled foreign slaughter technicians. The work is intense, the working environment is harsh, and the job carries a negative perception, so domestic workers rarely enter the field.
The public-private body "Visa and Stay Policy Council" decided in Sep. last year to create a new general skilled worker (E-7-3) slaughter worker occupation in light of such foreign labor demand.
The Ministry of Justice worked closely with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs to prepare procedures and scale for introducing foreign slaughter workers and launched a two-year pilot project in Jan. this year to bring in 150 people annually. The foreign slaughter technicians who arrived this time are the first case. They completed related coursework at training institutions in the slaughter field or obtained certifications and then accumulated at least three years of experience.
The Ministry of Justice expanded the allowable number of foreign slaughter workers per company, which had initially been capped at two, taking into account small slaughterhouses and the demand for slaughter workers. Companies may hire additional foreign workers up to 20% of the number of domestic employees they employ.
The Ministry of Justice said it expects the arrival of foreign slaughter technicians to stabilize the distribution of livestock products and help stabilize prices. Minister Jung Sung-ho of the Ministry of Justice said, "This entry of slaughter workers is a policy that both resolves the industry's long-standing labor shortage and protects the public's dining table, supporting both the field and people's livelihoods."