As the U.S. administration accelerates the 'restoration of domestic seafood competitiveness,' the South Korean government is on high alert. This is because the U.S. may impose export restrictions on South Korean seafood due to issues like labor exploitation of foreign workers. Accordingly, the South Korean government has begun revising laws to inspect the realities of the fishing industry and enhance the transparency of hiring foreign labor.
According to government officials on the 19th, President Donald Trump signed an executive order on the 17th of last month aimed at strengthening the competitiveness of the U.S. seafood industry. This order includes the directive that "the competitiveness of U.S.-made seafood, weakened by unfair foreign trade practices, must be restored."
Earlier, on the 3rd of last month, the U.S. government imposed an import ban on salt produced in Korean tidal flats. This marked the first time that South Korean products have been banned from import for reasons of forced labor. The U.S. is also reportedly conducting an investigation into the conditions of foreign workers in rural areas of South Korea. In this regard, there are concerns that regulations on overall seafood may expand, citing labor conditions in South Korea's fishing industry.
In response, the government is taking various measures. The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, together with the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Employment and Labor, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, formed an inter-agency task force on the 29th of last month to address tariff and trade issues concerning U.S. seafood. Currently, the Ministries of Labor and Justice are preparing to inspect the realities on fishing grounds. This inspection is expected to mainly focus on seaweed and oyster production areas in Jeollanam-do and aquaculture sites densely populated with foreign workers.
The Ministry of Justice and the National Assembly are also pushing for revisions to related laws to enhance the institutional transparency of hiring foreign workers. Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Lim Mi-ae recently proposed an amendment to the Immigration Control Act, noting that "the current foreign seasonal worker system relies only on guidelines without clear legal grounds, resulting in human rights violations such as trafficking of foreign seasonal workers." The amendment includes provisions for establishing clear legal grounds for the foreign seasonal worker system, operating a consultative body for seasonal labor policies, designating specialized agencies with budget support, and creating punishment clauses to prevent broker involvement.
The background for the government and National Assembly's actions lies in criticism that South Korea's foreign seasonal worker system is structurally reliant on brokers. The foreign seasonal worker system is designed to legally employ foreigners in agriculture and fisheries, which require concentrated labor during seasonal periods such as planting and harvesting. Eligible individuals include residents of foreign municipalities that have signed memoranda of understanding (MOU) with South Korean local governments, family members of marriage immigrants, and foreigners residing domestically who meet seasonal labor participation requirements.
Currently, one or two public officials from local governments recruit foreign workers from various countries, but due to language barriers and overwhelming workloads, there are many cases of hiring through brokers. Brokers are also known to engage in illegal activities such as demanding exorbitant fees or confiscating identification documents and making threats in exchange for paying for the airfare of foreign workers.
One government official stated that "it is practically impossible for a local government official, whose position changes every year, to directly recruit dozens of foreign workers" and added, "If specialized agencies take charge of the MOU signing and recruitment, while local governments only manage, efficiency and transparency will significantly improve."
Meanwhile, the government is paying close attention to the U.S. State Department's 'Trafficking in Persons Report' slated for release in June. The U.S. has a tendency to take import regulatory measures based on the contents of this report, so receiving a negative evaluation could severely impact South Korean seafood exports.
The representative of the Migrant Rights Center for All Meat noted that "the U.S. tends to implement export restrictions based on the annual tip report, and even if there were issues in the supply chain of a single item, they may impose import bans on all items from the corporation, requiring proof that there are no issues, making it necessary for the government and corporations to monitor the entire supply chain."
In fact, 'Top Glove', a leading manufacturer of rubber gloves in Malaysia, suffered a significant blow after being subjected to a 14-month import ban from the U.S. following a foreign worker's death in 2020. At that time, the market share of Malaysian companies, which accounted for 70% of the U.S. rubber glove market, plummeted to 47% as of 2023.
For this reason, while the share of agricultural and seafood products in total exports to the U.S. is not large, it is analyzed that it could lead to reduced sales for farmers and fishermen, making the U.S. measures cannot be ignored. According to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, last year, the U.S. ($480 million) was the third-largest export destination for South Korean seafood, following Japan ($660 million) and China ($530 million).
In particular, if the U.S. raises issues about seaweed farms, the export potential for seaweed, which aims for '$1 billion' this year, could be hindered. According to last year's figures, the top items exported to the U.S. included ▲seaweed ($210 million) ▲toothfish ($60 million) ▲oysters ($25 million) ▲flatfish ($19 million) ▲squid ($18 million), with seaweed exports accounting for a significant portion. The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries plans to expand the operation of a dedicated center to respond to non-tariff barriers and establish a system for managing export history information in response to U.S. tariffs and export policies.