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S. Korea: Shipbuilders desperately need more foreign workers

Local shipbuilders and key parts manufacturers called for measures to revise visa programs to make it easier to hire more foreign workers with hands-on experience, according to the industry ministry, Thursday.

The collective demand is in line with Korea’s lead in the industry amid a rapid recovery of global demand, underpinned by more buyers opting for high-value, green vessels for sustainable growth. Korea’s market share of 70 percent in the global high-value, green shipbuilding industry in the first three months of this year is bolstered further by the country having won orders to build 17 green liquefied natural gas (LNG) vessels, out of the total 19 orders placed worldwide, as of March.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and Financial Services Commission (FSC) held a meeting with top and medium-sized shipbuilders, late Wednesday, after celebrating the latest LNG bunker ship manufactured in the country by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries at the firm’s shipyard in Ulsan.

Among the attendees were executives of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, Samsung Heavy Industries, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, K Shipbuilding, DAE SUN Shipbuilding and Engineering, HJ Shipbuilding & Construction, Hankuk Carbon, JUNGWOO ENE and Korea Offshore & Shipbuilding Association (KOSHIPA).

The shipbuilders said the government’s simplified visa programs promptly met the needs of the industry which has long grappled to find welders, painters, electricians and plant workers.

About 5,500 foreign workers were put to work in the first three months of this year, more than a third of the 14,000 workers the industry had said were needed for the year.
Among them are holders of E-7 visa and E-9 visas. A total of 3,184 E-7 visa holders, all of them skilled workers, began working at local shipyards in January. They were among 4,305 recommended by the industry ministry and KOSHIPA.

Partner firms of large shipbuilders were able to hire 1,849 E-9 visa holders before March. More E-9 visa holders will find work, since the government revised rules to increase the related quota to 5,000.

Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Lee Chang-yang and FSC Chairman Kim Joo-hyun pledged further support to help local shipbuilders cement their lead in the global market.

“We were able to understand that the industry needed our assistance in the areas of deregulation and hiring of workers,” he said.

“We will continue communicating with the industry in the future to provide timely policy measures to advance the growth of the industry.”

Kim said financial regulations will be eased to better address and resolve the challenges the industry faces.

“Financial programs including refund guarantee programs will be revised to help shipbuilders win orders with greater stability and security,” he said.

In a refund guarantee plan, the guarantor returns the installments paid by the ship buyer at the beginning of the shipbuilding contract. It is a safe option to recover the lump-sum amount in case the contract is terminated due to the builder’s default.

Samsung Heavy Industries said the government measures will help it ensure orders are delivered on time.

“The local shipbuilding industry has long struggled to find workers,” a company official said. “The recently raised number of foreign and local workers that will be put to work at shipyards will ease delivery delay concerns.”

A Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (KSOE) official echoed the view. “We will be able to strengthen our competitveness in the long term,” the official said.
Source: The Korea Times

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