SEOUL — In a significant policy update, the South Korean government has authorized Chinese, Japanese, and Western restaurants to hire immigrant workers as kitchen assistants, a move aimed at alleviating labor shortages in the restaurant sector.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Officials announced on Friday that under the new work permit regulations, restaurants specializing in foreign cuisines such as Chinese, Japanese, and Western can now employ kitchen assistants from countries including China, Southeast Asia, and Central Asia. However, the labor ministry specified that immigrant workers are restricted to kitchen assistant roles and cannot serve as waitstaff. Notably, eateries such as bakeries and those serving pizza, hamburgers, fried chicken, and gimbap are excluded from this policy update due to a lesser demand for kitchen assistants in these establishments.