Situation of Mongolian legal and illegal migrant workers in South Korea

Abstract

Starting from the transition to a democratic society from socialist society, internal and international migration to seek for labor has intensified in Mongolia. Under the Industrial trainee system and Employment permit system of Korea, many Mongolian people are going to Korea for working by the inter-governmental or inter-organizational contracts. For living and employment conditions of the Mongolian migrant workers in Korea, specific studies are limited. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to explore the distinctive situations of Mongolian legal and illegal migrant workers in Korea.

The study shows that all Mongolian migrant workers, including legal and illegal, face many difficulties in destination country and cannot enjoy various basic rights stated in the internationally respected documents and national Constitution. Although Mongolian migrant workers earn more money in the Korea than in the home country, the findings of this study confirm that migrant workers are economically at risk in destination country too, because of non-stable work place (high probability to change workplace), difficulty of finding a job, no labour contract etc. The survey findings show that most Mongolian migrant workers live and work in critical situations with no safe work place, no comfortable living condition, and no sufficient social protection.