Small companies, N. Korean defectors seek win-win cooperation

By Tony Chang
SEOUL, July 16 (Yonhap) -- While concerns over a slowing overall job market grow,
small businesses, on the contrary, have been suffering from a chronic lack of
workers as younger workers vie for high-paying corporate jobs.
Given the trend, small companies ranging from electronic parts makers to food
manufacturers are keeping tabs on a growing pool of viable workers -- North
Korean defectors.
More than 16,000 North Koreans have settled in the South since the end of the
1950-53 Korean War, with the number rising annually, from 1,138 in 2002 to 2,809
last year.
Defectors generally say securing employment is their biggest challenge in the
capitalist South, so most settle for blue-collar jobs that don't require advanced
education, according to government data released in March.
Day laborers accounted for 43 percent of employed North Korean defectors,
compared to the 9 percent for South Koreans. The newcomers earned an average of
937,000 won (US$741) per person a month, about a third of what South Korean
workers earn on average.
Against this backdrop, small companies suffering from a lack of workers and
jobless North Korean defectors in pursuit of stable employment are increasingly
trying to find common ground for mutual benefit.
"Nowadays, it is difficult to find workers in the manufacturing field. Many young
(South Korean) people are avoiding factory jobs," Chang Gap-dong, head of Yesung
Engineering, said at a job fair for North Korean defectors held in western Seoul
on Thursday.
Twenty-four small businesses participated in the fair, the first of its kind in
the country. The event was co-hosted by the Association of Supporters for
Defecting North Korean Residents (ASDNKR) and labor and unification ministries.
Chang, head of a company that produces power equipment, said he believes defector
employees could adapt quickly "due to their strong will to survive."
Shim In-seob, head of a small confectionery packaging company, already has six
defectors on his payroll and was considering recruiting six more workers through
the fair, attended by some 80 job seekers.
"They're very hard-working. I plan to hire six more people. They're very
diligent, warm-hearted and properly carry out the tasks ordered by their bosses
without any complaints," said Shim.
A 30-year-old female defector said people like her can contribute greatly to
small businesses.
"I think I'll do fine, given that I've undergone much difficulty when crossing
into China before arriving here," said the woman, who declined to be named.
The woman, who arrived in South Korea in September, noted that many of the
defectors are also fluent in Chinese, suggesting they could be utilized greatly
in trading companies.
A 30-year-old male defector, who was receiving job training for construction and
engineering, said that although he was somewhat jittery due to the economic
downturn, he will be ready to work after he finishes his training next month.
"The job training ends in August, and the center usually brokers a job for
defectors, but I wanted to check out the atmosphere myself. I think I'm ready to
work," the man, who arrived in Seoul in February, said, also asking not to be
named.
Some job seekers, however, face barriers because of high minimum qualifications.
"We're hoping to hire workers at our daycare center for children, so job seekers
must be registered as social welfare experts. Those people are having difficulty
applying for jobs at our workplace," Choi Ok, head of the Hanminjok Daean School,
an alternative school, said.
ASDNKR Chairman Kim Il-joo said the defectors, who have lived most of their lives
in a non-competitive society, could contribute greatly with proper guidance and a
bit of "competitive spirit" injected in them.
"They've crossed the 'line of death' by coming to the South. I believe they can
do much to help small South Korean companies make headway in the economic
downturn," the chairman said.
Organizers of the event plan to hold four other similar ones throughout the year
in different regions of the country. They are aiming for 70-percent employment of
all defectors who attend the events.
odissy@yna.co.kr
(END)