KOREAN NET

Foreign students on Sept. 27, 2024, receive job counseling at the 2024 Busan International Students Job Fair at the Memorial Hall of Founding Spirit at Kyungsung University in Busan's Nam-gu District. (Yonhap News)

By Yoon Yeon Gyeong

Half of the country's small and medium exporting companies want to hire foreign office workers.

The KITA (Korea International Trade Association) Institute for International Trade said this in a report released on April 16 on the status and tasks of using foreign staff in overseas marketing for the trade industry.

The think tank's survey of 659 small and medium exporters found that 49.5% plan to hire foreign office workers within the next three years.

Twenty-seven percent said they employed foreign staff for office, administrative and research positions. Hiring satisfaction was also high at 3.8 points out of five.

The main reasons for securing foreign office workers included analysis of international markets (39.4%), relevant foreign language skills (20.6%) and overseas networks (19.3%).

Among such staff, those with F visas including for residents (F-2), ethnic Koreans from abroad (F-4) and marriage immigrants (F-6) accounted for the largest proportion at 42.1%.

Senior KITA researcher Kim Kkot-byeol said, "Because small and medium exporting companies are greatly struggling to secure overseas marketing personnel, demand for foreign staff is expected to keep rising."

dusrud21@korea.kr