The Human Resources Development Service of Korea on Feb. 9 announced a revamp of the interview evaluation process for the Employment Permit System and the selection point structure for hiring foreign workers. (iClickArt) (Unauthorized reproduction and redistribution of this image is prohibited under copyright law.)

By Kang Gahui

The weight of interviews in the skills test for selecting non-professional foreign workers on the E-9 visa will be increased, with in-depth questions on safety to be introduced.

The Human Resources Development Service of Korea (HRDK) on Feb. 9 pledged to improve this year the functional test and interview evaluation process for the Employment Permit System and the selection point setup for foreign workers.

The HRDK raised the scoring for the interview to more effectively verify speaking ability. It also raised the number of questions to gauge understanding of the names of industry-specific work tools and instructions and added in-depth questions on safety.

Also this year, the minimum passing score for the Test of Proficiency in Korean will be raised by five points for all industries.

These improvements will be applied starting from this year's evaluation.

A survey conducted last year found that 48.7% of employers were dissatisfied with the Korean-language speaking skills of foreign workers, citing their failure to adequately understand work instructions and safety rules.

kgh89@korea.kr