Seoul mayor, PPP lawmaker argue against minimum wage for Filipino caregivers

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon and People Power Party Rep. Na Kyung-won on Tuesday underscored the need to implement differential wages for Filipino domestic caregivers as controversies over high costs continue to escalate.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, right, speaks during a seminar on how to address the high wages for Filipino domestic caregivers, held at the National Assembly compound in Yeouido, western Seoul, on Tuesday. The event was hosted by People Power Party lawmakers, including Rep. Na Kyung-won, center. [YONHAP]

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon and People Power Party (PPP) Rep. Na Kyung-won on Tuesday underscored the need to implement differential wages for Filipino domestic caregivers as controversies over high costs continue to escalate ahead of the program’s pilot launch next week.

“The foreign domestic caregiver scheme was introduced to address cost issues, which have been identified as one of the factors contributing to the low birthrate,” Oh said during a seminar at the National Assembly compound in Yeouido, western Seoul, aimed at discussing solutions for the payment structure for Filipino caregivers.

“However, the original purpose has not been reflected in the current scheme.”

Oh first proposed the idea of bringing in foreign nannies during a Cabinet meeting in September 2022 in hopes of tackling the low birthrate issue.

“It would be quite a burden for average working households if they need to pay 2.38 million won per month, as required if the minimum wage is applied,” Oh said.

The mayor noted that the cost for foreign domestic caregivers in Hong Kong is at least 830,000 won ($622) per month, while in Singapore, it ranges from 480,000 won to 710,000 won.

Households in Seoul must pay 2.38 million won per month to Filipino caregivers if they work 8 hours a day, nearly half the median income for a three-person household in Korea.

“If we do not resolve the cost issue, the implementation of foreign domestic caregivers will remain a pie-in-the-sky solution for middle-class and lower-income households,” Oh said.

“We need a transformation in thinking to ensure that this project becomes a win-win for both the households using the service and the caregivers.”

Out of the 751 households that applied, 318 — about 43 percent — are located in affluent neighborhoods in southern Seoul, particularly Gangnam, Seocho and Songpa districts, according to the city government.

The 100 Filipino caregivers, currently undergoing training and set to begin work next Tuesday, are guaranteed a minimum wage of 9,860 won under Korea’s Labor Standards Act. The higher-than-expected payment also comes as Korea has ratified treaties that uphold the International Labour Organization (ILO) ban on wage discrimination between domestic and foreign workers.

During a confirmation hearing the day before, Labor Minister nominee Kim Moon-soo argued that applying differential wages to domestic caregivers would violate the Korean Constitution's principle of equal rights, a stance that Oh described as "difficult to understand."

PPP Rep. Na, who hosted the debate on Tuesday, added that it is essential to carefully examine whether the ILO’s anti-discrimination convention also prohibits reasonable discrimination.

Oh alternatively suggested issuing professional employment E-7 visas to domestic caregivers and allowing households to hire them directly without being subject to minimum wage requirements.

Kim Hyun-cheol, a business and management professor at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, argued during the seminar that these separate visas should eliminate the restriction on residence duration in the country as long as the caregivers are employed.

Na echoed the view on the need to revisit the country's visa scheme, noting that the current Employment Permit System — a governmental program designed to help small- and medium-sized Korean companies legally hire foreign workers — has remained unchanged for decades.

The pilot project for Filipino domestic caregivers is set to begin next Tuesday in Seoul, with 157 households participating.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]