Despite a special UN investigation expressing concern about the harsh conditions North Korean laborers endure overseas, recently published data and defector testimony suggests competition for foreign work opportunities remains high.

With conditions that include up to 20-hour work days, insufficient food, and a significant degree of wage confiscation, UN special rapporteur on N. Korean human rights Marzuki Darusman said on Wednesday that more than 50,000 workers are currently working overseas.

“DPRK nationals have been sent to work in many parts of the world, laboring under conditions that amount to a subjection to forced labor, both by their own and host governments,” Darusman said, warning that companies employing DPRK nationals in