South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has sparked intense debate with his comments on the “metropolitan visa” policy, aimed at supplying foreign labour to the country’s industrial regions.
The controversy escalated after President Lee openly criticised the shipbuilding industry’s reliance on low-wage foreign workers during a visit to Ulsan, a hub for the nation’s maritime sector.
His remarks have divided stakeholders. Local governments and businesses view the visa as a desperate measure to solve chronic labour shortages, while labour groups and critics argue it merely entrenches harsh working conditions and low wages.
What is the ‘metropolitan visa’?
The metropolitan visa programme, also known as the metropolitan-recommended visa, is a system that allows local governments to tailor visa requirements to their specific industrial needs and regional conditions. Once approved by the central government, the visas are issued to foreign nationals.
Ulsan has aggressively adopted this system to support its struggling shipyards. The city plans to bring in 440 foreign workers by the end of this year, following the recruitment of 88 workers last year for jobs specific to shipbuilding such as welding, electrical work and painting.
The annual salary requirement for the visa for these workers is set at the legal minimum wage level.