We are living in an international era in which no individual or country exists in isolation. In the past, many Koreans migrated to more developed countries such as the United States, Germany or Japan to escape from poverty. Since the 1988 Seoul Olympics, the number of foreigners who have come to Korea to work has increased every year. The country now has around 220,000 foreign residents.
        They move to Korea from places like China, the Philippines and other poor Asian countries because they think they can make more money in Korea than in their home countries and because they expect to be treated equally with other laborers in Korea.
        However, the employment system for immigrant workers does not allow them to work under conditions equal to those of Korean workers. To work legally in Korea, foreigners must come to our country as "technical trainees," professional workers or technology engineers.
        Most of them come as technical trainees. Although they are effectively laborers, they earn low wages because they are classified as trainees. This situation drives them into becoming illegal immigrants.
        According to the Justice Ministry, only 35 percent of foreign workers have legal employment visas. The rest work illegally at small companies, which suffer from a shortage of simple-skilled laborers. Because they are not registered with the Immigration Office, they have to work under difficult conditions. Moreover, such workers are not protected by the Korean Standard Labor Law.
        The biggest problems that illegal workers are faced with are unpaid salaries and lack of medical insurance. Many do not learn how to operate factory machines properly due to communication problems and are easily injured. Yet they are not covered by medical insurance.
        In addition, many employers do not pay regular salaries to illegal workers so as to prevent them from finding other work. Sometimes, unscrupulous employers even call the police to have workers deported to avoid paying the salary money they owe.
        These days, we often hear that many foreigners have been treated badly by their employers. About three months ago, an ethnic Korean from China tried to commit suicide at a foreign worker's shelter. The man, who had been a teacher in China, came to Korea in 1991. He was owed some 2 million won in back pay.
        Although he sued his employer for money he was owed, the judge ruled against him because he was an illegal worker.
        "It was my worst mistake to come to my home country to earn money," the worker said. He was finally deported back to China empty-handed.
        What we must keep in mind is that these workers come to Korea, not to be illegal residents, but to make money. Who wants to be left empty-handed after years of hard work? If our government does not take care of these problems, how can Korean immigrants in other countries expect to obtain rights and freedoms? To solve these social problems, our government should encourage undocumented workers to register with the Ministry of Labor. This ministry should formulate policies that allow these workers to have legitimate jobs as proper laborers so that their present employers cannot mistreat them. This would allow them to benefit from medical insurance in order that they can be protected under the labor laws.
        Don't forget the fact that migrant workers are working in "3-D" (dirty, difficult or dangerous) jobs that Korean-born workers hesitate to do. Keep in mind that without their contributions, many small companies would suffer from a shortage of laborers.
        Much more needs to be done to improve the situation of these illegal workers before Koreans are able to point proudly to our record in this area.