China sees large influx of North Korean workers

North Korean workers are being brought into China en masse.

A large Chinese restaurant in Yanji, Jilin Province, employed North Korean women early this year. Run by a Chinese national, the business has hired North Korean workers via North Korean employment agencies.

Some 20 North Korean women in their 20s are known to work at the restaurant under the supervision of a North Korean manager who brought them to China.

Dandong in China`s Liaoning Province is also home to companies that hire North Korean workers. Sources in Dandong said an estimated 1,000 North Koreans are working in Dandong and Donggang at the mouth of the Yalu River.

A Singaporean clothing company in Donggang has more than 300 North Korean employees and is expected to hire hundreds more this year.

Dozens of North Koreans are working at other factories in the region but remain isolated from the world under the supervision of North Korean managers.

A source in Dandong said, “As recently as several years ago, there were just 300 to 400 North Korea workers here. But their number has been skyrocketing from last year.”

North Korean workers are known to earn a monthly salary of 100 to 200 U.S. dollars, lower than the average of 300 dollars of a Chinese worker in the region. The North Korean employment agencies are also said to take part of the North Korean workers` salaries as commission.

Companies in Dandong are reportedly scrambling to hire North Korean workers, citing high productivity and lack of complaints over extra work.