“South Korea cannot sustain its labor market without migrant workers. The recurring incidents of migrant workers’ deaths indicate systemic inadequacies, a lack of guarantee for workplace changes and inherent discrimination,” Udaya Rai, the head of the Migrants’ Trade Union (MTU), told Korea Pro.

Rai’s remarks come on the heels of a tragic incident involving the deaths of five Nepalese migrant workers in June. The advocacy group contends that the deaths are a direct consequence of hazardous working conditions — a claim that paints a grim picture of the state of migrant labor in the country.