Previous employment to count in E-7-4 assessment for workers forced to change jobs Ministry of Justice building in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province (Justice Ministry) Businesses in the agriculture and fisheries sectors will be able to hire more foreign workers under the E-7-4 visa, after the Justice Ministry said Monday it would raise the employment cap for skilled foreign workers in the two sectors to 50 percent of each firm’s Korean workforce, up from the current 30 percent.The ministry said it decided to introduce the special quota increase starting in June, citing chronic labor shortages in the agriculture and fisheries sectors.Small businesses with fewer than four Korean employees will be allowed to hire up to two foreign workers, regardless of the proportion of foreign workers in their workforce.“This institutional improvement will help ensure both a stable supply of skilled workers and stronger protection of foreign workers’ rights, while contributing to the revitalization of regional economies,” Justice Minister Jeong Seong-ho said.The E-7-4 visa is a points-based skilled worker visa that allows long-term manual workers to transition from temporary visas to a more stable, multiyear skilled worker status.Eligible workers include those who have stayed in Korea for less than 10 years under an E-9 nonprofessional employment visa, an E-10 maritime crew visa or an H-2 working visit visa. They are assessed under a points system that takes into account demographic and skill-related factors, including annual income, Korean-language proficiency and age.Before the policy expansion, the higher 50 percent cap applied only to firms in areas of population decline and in root industries, a government-designated category of basic manufacturing sectors such as casting, molding, welding and surface treatment.The ministry also said it would recognize workers’ previous employment experience if they had to change workplaces due to unavoidable circumstances, such as business closure, assault, unpaid wages or human rights violations.Under current requirements, foreign workers applying for E-7-4 status must have worked at their current workplace for more than one year.Under the new special rule, if workers were forced to change workplaces due to unavoidable circumstances, the period they worked at their previous workplace will count toward their length of service.