Temporary labour migration, social movements and neoliberal transformation in South Korea Chulhyo Kim A thesis submitted in fulfilment of requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences The University of Sydney 2018 Statement of originality and ethics approval This is to certify that to the best of my knowledge, the content of this thesis is my own work. This thesis has not been submitted for any degree or other purposes. I certify that the intellectual content of this thesis is the product of my own work and that all the assistance received in preparing this thesis and sources have been acknowledged. For this thesis, I obtained the human ethics approval from the Human Research Ethics Committee of the University of Sydney (Protocol Number: 14240). Chulhyo Kim i Contents Statement of originality and ethics approval ...................................................................... i Contents .......................................................................................................................... ii List of tables and figures ................................................................................................... v Tables ................................................................................................................................................................ v Figures ............................................................................................................................................................. vi Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................ vii Abstract of Thesis ............................................................................................................. x List of Abbreviations ....................................................................................................... xii Chapter 1 Introduction ................................................................................................. 1 Migrant workers and pro-migrant activists in protests, Seoul 2012 ..................................... 1 Complex and intertwined research areas: labour migration, migration policy and social movements ......................................................................................................................................... 3 Gaps in the literature: sedentary bias, fragmentation, political agenda-oriented, receiving country bias, and theoretical isolation ............................................................................ 7 Research problems: temporary labour migration, state policy and migrants’ resistance in the context of neoliberal social transformation ................................................ 14 An outline of theory, methodology and thesis structure .......................................................... 15 Chapter 2 Labour migration, temporary migration policy, and social movements in neoliberal transformation: a theoretical account ................................................... 20 Neoliberalism and Polanyian critiques ............................................................................................ 21 International migration in the process of global commodification of labour .................. 33 Temporary labour migration policy as a political project for market economy ............. 41 Social movements of migrants and pro-migrant activists as a part of protective countermovement .................................................................................................................................... 45 Conclusion: a social transformation approach theoretical framework .............................. 51 Chapter 3 Methodological principles, methods and reflections ................................... 54 Methodological principles: historicity, political economic structure and transformative agency ............................................................................................................................ 54 Methods and data ...................................................................................................................................... 56 Reflections .................................................................................................................................................... 60 ii Chapter 4 Development, democratisation and international migration before neoliberalism : a historical account ........................................................................ 64 Rapid economic growth, exploitation of workers and resistances under authoritarian developmental regimes .............................................................................................. 65 Out-migration of Korean workers ...................................................................................................... 78 Arrivals of migrants and exclusionary immigration policy ..................................................... 84 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................................... 92 Chapter 5 Labour market and international migration in the neoliberal era: a political- economic account .................................................................................................. 94 Democratisation and neoliberal transformations ....................................................................... 95 Polarisation in the labour market under neoliberal transformations ............................. 106 Increasing international migration................................................................................................. 125 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................. 132 Chapter 6 Introduction of temporary labour migration programme: a policy process analysis ............................................................................................................... 135 Opening a ‘back-door’ to international migrants (1987–1991) ......................................... 136 A ‘side-door’ policy: Industrial Training System (1991–2004) .......................................... 141 Institutionalising temporary labour migration policy: Employment Permit System (2004–present) ....................................................................................................................................... 150 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................. 160 Chapter 7 South Korean temporary labour migration scheme as a part of neoliberal transformation : a critical policy analysis .............................................................. 163 Rationales of the South Korean temporary labour migration scheme ............................ 164 Governing mechanisms of the temporary labour migration scheme and their outcomes.................................................................................................................................................... 179 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................. 197 Chapter 8 Migrant workers’ experience and resistance............................................. 199 Migrant workers’ experiences at work and living .................................................................... 200 Rise of migrant workers’ resistance ............................................................................................... 206 Resistance to new temporary labour migration policy .......................................................... 219 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................. 229 Chapter 9 South Korean civil society’s engagement : a social movement approach ... 231 Emerging of pro-migrant activists and organisations ............................................................ 232 Pro-migrant activists in the historical and the political-economic contexts ................. 242 Ambivalent or cooperative relationship between migrant workers and pro-migrant activists....................................................................................................................................................... 253 Regression or progression of the migrant and pro-migrant social movements .......... 259 iii Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................. 266 Chapter 10 Conclusion ............................................................................................... 268 Bibliography ................................................................................................................. 273 Appendix I .................................................................................................................... 313 List of participatory observations ................................................................................................... 313 List of research participants .............................................................................................................. 318 Appendix II ..................................................................................................................