Despite the tough – and often life-threatening conditions – that North Korean laborers abroad find themselves in, it has long been considered a highly-desirable job. Ju Seong-ha, arguably the most prominent South Korean journalist with a North Korean refugee background, was quite definite with the title of a 2014 piece: “A North Korean worker’s dream: Being sent overseas.”

In interviews with roughly a dozen former North Korean workers abroad, virtually all say the same thing: an overseas job might be hard, risky and demanding, but it is still sought after and vastly preferable to work at home, not only because