President Yoon Suk Yeol instructed Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on Monday to come up with measures to unify the government's oversight responsibilities for the foreign labor force, citing growing labor shortages at industrial sites, his spokesperson said.

Yoon gave the instruction during a weekly meeting with Han at his office, saying the labor shortages are becoming serious despite the government's efforts due to "structural" reasons of a decline in the working age population, according to presidential spokesperson Lee Do-woon.

"The president instructed the prime minister to come up with measures to unify oversight of the foreign labor force, which is scattered across ministries, to ensure it is managed comprehensively and flexibly in line with changes in the market," Lee said during a press briefing.

"The prime minister reported that he would form a task force to unify oversight of the foreign labor force and swiftly come up with remedies," he said.

Currently, the legal and administrative responsibilities concerning foreign workers are scattered across ministries, with the labor ministry handling nonprofessionals working for small and medium-sized companies, the agriculture ministry and local governments handling seasonal workers on farms, and the oceans ministry handling the hiring of seamen, the presidential office said.

Source: Yonhap News Agency