CINA

 
Foreign Dancers Highlight Plight of Migrant Workers

A parade of foreign dancers is considered a highlight of events in amusement parks, offering great joy to visitors. However, behind angelic smiles and beautiful costumes is the pain of living under slave-like contracts.

According to the Migrant Workers' Labor Union, 150 dancers at Everland, the nation's largest amusement park located in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, are subject to slave labor-type contracts. They work under individual contracts with Dong-il Entertainment, a manpower supply company that introduces dancers to Everland.

The contract states that both Everland and Dong-il do not take any responsibility for dancers' accidents during performances except for 2 million won that is paid by an insurance company and dancers can be fired if they get hurt or contract an illness that requires more than one month of treatment.

As well, collective action by two dancers or more is banned, according to the contract.

In Everland, a 30-minute parade takes place six times a day. There are one-hour breaks between parades. Although it's called break time, there is actually no time for rest as dancers are busy preparing for the next performance, changing costumes and revamping their makeup. Summer is an especially tough season as they wear heavy fur clothes and decorations..

``Although dancers practice and perform more than 12 hours a day, we receive salaries of 700,000 to 800,000 won per month on average. Also, if we sit down due to fatigue during rehearsals or fail to dye our hair blonde once a month in order to look exotic, we have to a pay a fine of 100,000 won, which is more than 10 percent of our monthly salary,'' (one female performer) said..

``Like foreign dancers at Everland, many migrant workers suffer from rampant slave-like contracts. They have no chance to get access to education or information regarding their labor rights or Korean labor law,'' said Han Seung-wook, an official from the Migrant Workers' Labor Union.

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2007/06/117_5310.html

 
MWTV, in its next English news (#46) will report following:

If you go to Everland Theme Park, you can see dancers in magnificent costumes dancing. And every one of those dancers is a migrant worker here on an E-6 visa.

Even though they may have a legal visa, they are living lives under bondage [like slaves] with no idea when they might be able to return to their own country.

Last fall, Oxana from the Ukraine was in the middle of a performance when she hurt her back and left leg but despite the injury and the butterfly costume weighing over 6 kilograms that she was wearing, the show went on. Unfortunately afterwards, she wasn't able to get proper medical attention nor a rest and ultimately the injury exacerbated so much that she developed a [serious spinal problem/slipped disk] to the point of disability.

Over time, despite the injury, Oxana was unable to receive proper medical care, much less  (receive) two weeks sick leave. And because of other instances of forced deportation from her work place, she was afraid it might happen to her if she pursued treatment.

For these dancers, although they don't have dressing rooms, they have to change three times a day. They are also forced to have their hair bleached and dyed once a month, which has led to much hair loss. In addition, from the modest 900,000 Won they earn per month, they are docked 100,000 Won each time they are caught sitting down during non-break periods.

Since these workers come to Korea on E-6 visas, they are classified as entertainers and most don't receive work training and have to work under bad conditions. The need for human rights for these workers is an immediate reality.

* 잔혹 동화의 나라, 삼성에버랜드 규탄 기자회견 (PhotoStory by "Tori~")