Mongolian Labor Minister S Chinzorig is currently making an official visit to S.Korea where he is having meetings with his counterpart, Korean Minister of Labor and Employment, Lee Ki Kweon. Top on the agenda is discussion of labor cooperation program under which Mongolia supplies an annual quota of workers.

During last week’s meeting a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) entitled “Labor Force in Korea – Labor Agreement” was signed. This is a comprehensive document consisting of 17 provisions and 83 clauses. The agreement was first made in 2006 and has since been renewed in 2008, 2011 and 2013.

The Mongolian Government is naturally keen to increase the annual quota. It should be noted, however, that the quota depends upon the specific demand for workers from Korean employers. Over the last five years Korean demand for foreign workers has been decreasing.

As a result of the program, the Mongolian workers gain professional skills and experience during their time in Korea. Upon their return home, the Mongolian Government is providing a range of incentives for them to set up their own companies (small and medium enterprises), including a loan program, tax breaks and equipment purchase support. It should be noted that this is unrelated to the current MoU.

Since the start of the program, Mongolia has supplied 30,000 workers to S.Korea, most of who work in factories. Currently, 8193 Mongolians are working in Korea, 713 people went this year under the labor contract program having first taken a Korean language proficiency test and met other preliminary requirements.