Kim Sun-soon, second from left, the Seoul Metropolitan Government's chief policymaker for gender equality and family issues, speaks during a meeting with Filipino caregivers at a partner firm's office in Seoul, Sept. 24. The city government said, Sunday, it will remove a curfew and make other necessary rule changes for the Filipino nannies who are working in Seoul under its pilot program. Yonhap

The Seoul Metropolitan Government will lift a curfew and implement a revised pay system and regulations for Filipino caregivers starting this month. The decision follows a pilot program that highlighted several issues over the past two months, including two caregivers being absent without permission.

The two, who had been out of contact after leaving their accommodation on Sept. 15, were detained in Busan, Friday. They now face deportation under relevant laws concerning illegal stay.

According to the city government, Sunday, officials have held meetings with representatives from the Ministry of Employment and Labor, partner companies, and the nannies to address issues related to the project. This initiative is part of a key policy introduced by Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon to help boost Korea's low birthrate by alleviating childcare burdens.

They decided to remove the curfew that prohibited caregivers from leaving their shared accommodation after 10 p.m. While the partner agencies had implemented the curfew and monitored the return of the caregivers, the workers expressed their dissatisfaction, saying they are adults capable of deciding how to spend their time.

Other notable changes include allowing workers the option to receive their wages twice a month instead of once and permitting them to continue working in Korea after a six-month trial period, unless there is a significant reason not to. Additionally, commuting distances will be taken into account when coordinating work schedules for those who work part-time at two or more households.

"We made those changes after collecting opinions from the foreign workers and others involved in the program and observing some areas that have room for improvement," said Kim Sun-soon, head of the city government's policy division for gender equality and family.

The announcement follows the decision to deport two of the 100 Filipino workers who violated Korea's immigration laws and the work contracts they signed with the city government for their job opportunities in the capital.

According to Korea's immigration office in Busan, the women were detained in the southern port city on Friday after failing to turn up for work since Sept. 15.

The two workers were confirmed to be employed by the owner of an accommodation facility in Busan's Yeonje District. It is believed they were offered higher wages than the legal minimum wage of 9,860 won ($7.30) per hour for caregivers.

Under the Immigration Control Law, foreign workers could be deported for failing to comply with visa rules — a change of job without permission, in this case.

Violators could be banned from entering Korea for a certain period and could be required to submit extra documents to obtain a permit of entry after that period.

To prevent similar incidents, city officials vowed to strengthen their partnership with the Philippine Embassy in Korea, which sent its representative to the accommodation facility on Sept. 28 to warn the workers of possible consequences of breaking that law.

The Korea Times tried to reach the embassy for comments regarding the rule changes and the two workers facing deportation, but officials were unavailable for a response.

This development occurs at a critical time as officials from both the city and central governments work to promote the program as an effective solution for working parents wishing to have children. After the pilot phase, they plan to expand the initiative into a nationwide project, issuing E-9 visas to an additional 1,200 individuals from the Philippines to provide caregiving services in 2025.

So far, government officials have been struggling to garner extensive support for the project. Many households complain that the program is unaffordable, and for that reason and others, 24 households have canceled their contracts midway, while the workers say they feel restricted by some unreasonable rules such as the curfew.

As of Sunday, 98 Filipino caregivers were employed by 169 households as full-time or part-time workers, according to the city government and the ministry.