Korean companies are facing a significant backlash as U.S. visa restrictions hinder their ability to bring skilled workers to the U.S. to support their multi-billion dollar investments in the American battery and semiconductor sectors. The crackdown has led to the criminalization of Korean workers who were brought in to fill labor shortages, despite pledges of $150 billion in new investments following a recent meeting between South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and former President Donald Trump.
The situation has sparked outrage in South Korea, with media outlets like Chosun Ilbo and News1 expressing a sentiment of betrayal. Chosun Ilbo criticized the U.S. for treating companies that have invested heavily in American infrastructure as "illegal immigrants," while News1 emphasized that the U.S. has encouraged these investments but then restricted essential personnel from entering the country.
One of the core challenges is that South Korea does not have a country-reserved work visa, unlike countries such as Australia and Singapore, which have specific visa categories for skilled workers. The Partner with Korea Act, which would provide specialty visas, has been repeatedly introduced in Congress but has yet to pass. The existing H-1B visa system, capped at 85,000 annually and lacking per-country quotas, does not accommodate many construction trades necessary for building factories.
The crackdown appears aimed at increasing American employment, but Korean officials argue it is creating insurmountable obstacles. A construction official lamented, "It"s impossible to meet construction deadlines with only Americans," highlighting the urgent need for skilled technicians to fulfill contractual obligations. As the situation develops, the future of the Hyundai-LG battery factory and other investments hangs in the balance, with local media describing the search for qualified workers as "like picking stars from the sky." For more on this issue, see recent developments regarding worker detentions at the Hyundai battery plant.
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