Protesters holding banners rally near Seoul Station in central Seoul, Oct. 6, 2024. They demanded the right to change jobs freely without requiring employers' permission. Courtesy of Cameron Thomson, Allison Hall

Foreign English teachers in Korea formed a labor union for the first time last year, advocating for the rights of around 13,000 instructors at language institutes and public schools. One of the main goals of the union is to eliminate laws that make it illegal for non-Korean workers holding certain types of employment visas to change jobs without their employers' permission.

Despite ongoing concerns about this issue, foreign English teachers, most of whom come from Western countries like the U.S., have remained largely overlooked. Korea offers several types of employment visas and these teachers are typically employed under the E-2 visa for foreign language instructors.

But the establishment of the branch representing foreign English teachers under the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, the country's largest labor union, highlighted that they also face the same problem as migrant workers in farms and factories: the need for a letter of release (LOR).

All non-Korean workers employed on E-type visas are required to obtain an LOR in order to switch jobs. Failure to secure an LOR usually results in the worker being required to leave the country within 30 days.

This system makes it extremely difficult for foreign workers to speak out against unfair workplace practices, including sexual harassment and verbal abuse, according to Park Jeong-jik, the Korean manager of the union's Seoul branch.

"It's modern-day slavery," he said. "The government uses this system to monitor foreign workers in Korea. They should improve it to track the industries they are engaged in rather than monitoring them."

Protesters rally near Seoul Station in central Seoul, April 28, 2024, demanding the right to change jobs freely without requiring employers' permission. Courtesy of Allison Hall

In a country where high scores on English language proficiency tests like the Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC) are crucial for securing good jobs, there has been a strong desire to learn the language from native speakers. As of December, 13,443 foreign nationals held E-2 visas, according to the Korea Immigration Service. The majority of them teach English.

One of them is Allison Hall, a 28-year-old native of Missouri, who arrived in Korea in 2020 to teach her native language to children.

Hall said her first experience with an LOR left her fuming, she told The Korea Times, reflecting her frustration at the time.

At the first language school she worked for, Hall was asked to sign a document proving she completed training against child abuse, even though the session was skipped. When she raised concerns, Hall said her manager dismissed her concerns and subsequently engaged in behavior that included misleading her about labor laws.

This ultimately prompted her to leave the job, leading to her encounter with the LOR.

"I ended up having to pay about 3 million won ($2,072) and sign a bogus 'NDA' (non-disclosure agreement) to get my LOR. Make no mistake, this was extortion and coercion to get free," she said.

However, given that one of the purposes of the Immigration Act is to ensure the "orderly management of foreign nationals," some argue that calls for the abolition of the LOR should be viewed from a broader range of perspectives.

"Even though the system has negative effects, it plays a crucial role in upholding the fundamental principles of the Immigration Act," said Jung Bong-soo, an attorney at Kangnam Labor Law Firm.

Korean employers sponsor visas for foreign workers by guaranteeing their status in the country, Jung explained.

"If these workers were able to leave their jobs easily, it could undermine the purpose of introducing an LOR, which is to ensure a well-regulated immigration status," he said.

However, a 65-year-old, who wished to be called Sione and has run an English language institute for over 14 years in Gunpo, Gyeonggi Province, pointed out that the system primarily benefits the government rather than language institutes, although it does offer some advantages for employers as well.

"Running my language institute without an LOR wouldn't be a problem. However, I believe the immigration office would face significant challenges in verifying the workplaces of foreign workers, locating them and enforcing the laws," he said.

Korean employers who hire foreign workers must report to the authorities within 15 days if an employee terminates their employment unexpectedly, which can be a significant burden for managers.

"In this regard, a letter from a previous workplace can serve as a reference check, enabling employers to hire candidates with confidence," he said.

In an email responding to The Korea Times' request for comment, the Ministry of Justice stated that an LOR is designed to protect the contractual trust between employers and employees, maintain orderly immigration status and safeguard the interests of well-intentioned employers.

"If foreign workers are allowed to change jobs freely, it may disrupt the labor market, as they could breach their contracts with their original employers and leave their workplaces without authorization," it said.

The ministry also noted that foreign workers can change jobs without an LOR if their original employment contract has been completed or if they were dismissed or resigned early due to reasons not attributable to them, such as business closure, suspension or unpaid wages.

Lee Kyu-young, a senior research fellow at the Korea Labor Institute, stated that expanding the authorities' role in determining which workplace practices are unfair enough to justify such measures could improve the system.

"Deciding whether certain work practices are unfair enough to justify changing jobs without an LOR can be tricky. However, a stronger presence of authorities to which foreign workers can report unfair practices — helping assess whether their experiences legally justify changing jobs without permission — could make employers more cautious in how they treat their workers."