The management of foreign workers in Korea is strictly regulated by the Immigration Control Act, which follows the principle of protecting domestic employment. The non-professional employment (E-9) and the visitation employment (H-2) of Chinese and former Soviet residents, which make up the majority of foreign workers, are regulated under the Foreign Employment Act. Due to the recent increase in violations of the Immigration Control Act and the Foreign Employment Act by illegal foreign workers, this article aims to examine the limits and labor law protections afforded to them.

■ Application of the Immigration Control Act
The Immigration Control Act is a regulatory law that governs the entry and exit management of foreign nationals, the management of foreign nationals residing in Korea, and the recognition process for refugees. The law specifies that foreign nationals may reside in Korea within the range of their residency qualifications and duration (Article 17). To work in Korea, foreign nationals must obtain the appropriate residency qualifications and the employer must hire a person with the appropriate employment qualifications (Article 18).
The Supreme Court has detailed the purpose of the Immigration Control Act's enforcement measures in regards to foreign nationals who violate the law as follows: "While regulating the qualifications and duration of residency and status or position of foreign nationals who reside in Korea under Article 18, Paragraph 1 of the Immigration Control Act, it also regulates restrictions on the employment of foreign nationals under Article 18, Paragraph 2. The legislative intent of this law cannot simply be interpreted as being solely for the purpose of cracking down on illegal foreign residents. These regulations aim to effectively achieve objectives such as reducing instability in the domestic employment market caused by the influx of foreign nationals without employment qualifications, efficiently managing the labor force, and maintaining working conditions for domestic workers by regulating the employment qualifications of foreign nationals and prohibiting the employment of foreign nationals without the appropriate employment qualifications."

■ Application of the Foreign Employment Act
The Foreign Employment Act aims to facilitate the systematic introduction and management of foreign workers in order to ensure smooth labor supply and balanced economic development. The Act applies to foreign workers with non-professional employment (E-9) and visitation employment (H-2) qualifications.
Foreign workers with non-professional employment (E-9) use the "Employment Permit System." This system allows employers who have not been able to hire domestic workers despite efforts to employ them to hire specific foreign workers. Once the foreign worker enters into a labor contract with a specific employer, he or she can enter the country. On the other hand, ethnic Korean workers with visitation employment (H-2) use a special employment permit system with labor permission. For employment of foreign nationals of Korean descent, they are allowed to enter the country first, engage in job search activities for a certain period of time, and then be permitted to work for a certain period of time if they find a job. However, if they fail to find a job during the job search period, they must leave the country. Foreign workers can work within a range of three years and can extend their employment period for one year and ten months once, within the three-year period.

■ Application of General Labor Law
In Korea, the principle of "territoriality" applies to all individuals who provide labor for pay within the country. Even if a foreigner's employment contract is signed abroad and provides labor in Korea or a foreign company contracts with a foreign worker and explicitly states that Korean labor laws are excluded in favor of the laws of the country of origin, according to Article 28 of International Law, Korean labor laws will apply according to the mandatory laws of the area where labor is provided.
During the provision of labor in Korea, discrimination against foreigners is prohibited under Article 6 of the Labor Standards Act, which specifies that "the employer cannot discriminate against foreign workers based on their nationality." However, with regard to the protection of illegal aliens under labor laws, administrative interpretation has determined that "illegal aliens are not protected because the employment contract itself is not effective." However, the Supreme Court has recognized the industrial accidents of illegal aliens, and even the severance pay of industrial trainees, so the Ministry of Employment and Labor has changed its position and now considers illegal aliens to be protected workers under labor law.
The Supreme Court's ruling on the application of labor standards law to illegal aliens is as follows: "Foreign employment restrictions are only intended to prohibit the actual act of employing a foreigner without qualifications, not to prohibit the legal effects of the rights and obligations of the labor relationship, including labor law rights, based on labor provided by a foreigner without qualifications. Therefore, even if a foreigner without qualifications violates the employment restrictions under the Immigration Control Act and signs a labor contract, the labor contract cannot be considered invalid as a result. However, since qualifications for employment allow foreign nationals to legally engage in employment activities within Korea, the labor relationship with a foreigner without qualifications is suspended, and the parties can terminate the labor contract at any time based on the lack of such qualifications."
The Ministry of Employment and Labor's Foreigner Complaint Handling Guidelines require that complaints from foreigners be received and processed equally with those from nationals. If a foreigner is providing labor in a workplace where the Labor Standards Act applies, the Act will be applied regardless of whether the foreigner has violated the Immigration Control Act. Labor supervisors are obligated to treat foreign workers equally with domestic workers and conduct regular inspections to ensure compliance with labor laws.