Gwangju Special City to Further Strengthen Seasonal Worker Program Next Year

【Financial News Jeonnam-Gwangju = Reporter Hwang Tae-jong】Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City (Gwangju Special City) will further strengthen the operation of its seasonal worker program next year in cooperation with NongHyup and cities and counties. The initiative aims to address labor shortages in rural areas and create stable working conditions for seasonal workers.
 According to Gwangju Special City on the 16th, the seasonal worker program is a system that supplies labor to farms facing shortages during the busy farming season. As the program continues to expand, cities and counties and operating agencies have an increasingly important role in protecting workers’ human rights and safety while carefully managing working conditions and living arrangements.
 Accordingly, the city held the “2027 Seasonal Worker and Agricultural Labor Officials Workshop” with the NongHyup Jeonnam Regional Headquarters on the 14th. The workshop was attended by about 100 people, including NongHyup officials operating seasonal worker programs and team leaders and other officials from cities and counties, to strengthen their practical capabilities.
 The participants shared information on △the policy direction for the 2027 seasonal worker program; △revisions to and the operating direction of Rural Workforce Brokerage Centers; △practical labor management, including drafting employment contracts and paying wages; △protecting seasonal workers’ human rights and responding to grievances; △training to prevent safety accidents during farm work; △enrollment in and coverage provided by the three mandatory insurance programs for seasonal workers; △plans to expand the public seasonal worker program; and △best operating practices by region.
 Kim Hyun-mi, head of Gwangju Special City’s Agricultural Policy Division, emphasized, "For the seasonal worker program to become firmly established, workers’ rights and safety must be guaranteed, while farms must also provide responsible employment management."
 Gwangju Special City plans to use the workshop as an opportunity to strengthen its cooperation system with cities, counties and NongHyup. It will gather difficulties encountered in the field and suggestions for improving the system, and actively reflect them in next year’s business plan.
 The city also plans to support the stable operation of the seasonal worker program by continuing to share information among relevant agencies and monitoring conditions at worksites.
 Kim Hyun-mi, head of the Agricultural Policy Division, said, "We will strengthen our support by working closely with relevant agencies, including cities, counties and NongHyup, to provide farms with a stable workforce when needed and ensure that seasonal workers have a safe and respectful working environment."

[email protected] Hwang Tae-jong Reporter