For the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, North Korean workers have reportedly been dispatched to China.
A group of 500 workers has been sent, and it is expected that more North Korean laborers will follow in the near future.
A source in the Korean-Chinese community in Hunchun, Jilin Province told Radio Free Asia (RFA) on September 10 that “500 North Korean workers were dispatched to Hunchun between August 28 and 29.” The source also mentioned that “the workers were transported in large buses through the Hunchun customs checkpoint over the course of two days.”
It was further reported that Chinese buses were sent to pick up the North Korean workers from the North Korean customs side.
The source revealed that “150 of the dispatched workers have been employed by a clothing company located in Hunchun.” The company, operated by a local Chinese businessman, is anticipating a larger influx of North Korean laborers following this initial deployment, according to RFA.
The source also added that “between the end of 2022 and the end of 2023, North Korea repatriated over 3,000 workers, most of whom were unable to work due to illness or had developed mental health issues after long periods of confinement. Those who caused issues during communal living in China were also sent back.”
The explanation continued, “North Korea is now sending new laborers to China as of the end of August, following the withdrawal of workers who could no longer generate funds for the regime.”
Despite the partial withdrawal, the remaining North Korean workers in China continue to work at their previously contracted companies.
The source commented that “although North Korean laborers are currently deployed to a few companies in Jilin Province, they are expected to be dispatched across China eventually, given the high demand for young laborers who live and work on-site, offering endless production potential.”
Additionally, another source from Dandong in Liaoning Province, told RFA that “the newly dispatched 500 North Korean workers will be divided among three companies in Hunchun.”
“Hunchun has several clothing manufacturing companies, including those in the Sino-Korean Economic Development Zone,” the source explained, adding that “on August 29, around 200 North Korean workers were sent to Hunchun La Poni Fashion Co. Ltd.”
Companies that previously employed North Korean workers had assumed the labor supply would end due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the source continued, but with the recent arrival of new laborers, businesses in Dandong are feeling more reassured.
As China’s national income rises, recruitment for manufacturing and other less desirable industries is becoming increasingly difficult. With young Chinese workers avoiding factory and rural jobs, North Korea’s young laborers are being welcomed for their productivity.
The source also mentioned that while North Korean workers have initially been deployed to the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in Jilin, their presence is expected to expand to many companies across the three northeastern provinces. This development is considered positive news for businesses in need of factory labor.
The source concluded by noting that “North Korean workers were initially set to be withdrawn by the end of 2019 due to sanctions following the country’s nuclear tests, but the outbreak of COVID-19 in China provided an opportunity for North Korea to maintain a long-term source of foreign currency through its laborers.”
According to a report released earlier this year by the United Nations Panel of Experts on North Korea Sanctions, approximately 100,000 North Korean workers remain employed abroad in countries including China and Russia.
Since North Korea’s claim of completing its nuclear force in 2017 with the test launch of the Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 2397, which requires all countries to repatriate North Korean workers by 2019. However, China has continued to violate this resolution.
BY YOUNGNAM KIM [kim.youngnam@koreadaily.com]
