Today, North Korean defectors exist as a new minority group in South Korean society. North Korean defectors are a minority not only in their number within the population but also in the social, economic, and political powers, causing them to experience differential treatment under the absolute differential powers. Recently, a discourse on "social exclusion" of the poverty class in European societies was applied to the North Korean defectors being a minority group in South Korean society.

North Korean defectors experience multi-dimensional and cumulative exclusion in South Korean society. The ？ocial Exclusion？that the North Korean defectors experience appears in five types of exclusions: exclusion from the labor market, economic exclusion, exclusion through social isolation, spatial exclusion, and institutional exclusion. The long-term unstable employment shows that the defectors are excluded from the labor market, and the existence as a poor class shows that they are economically excluded. Futhermore, North Korean defectors experience social isolation in the face of prejudices and discriminations, categorizing and differentiating them as outsiders of South Korean society. Each type of exclusion that results in “social exclusion” forms a vicious circle of reinforcement for each other.

“Social exclusion” experienced by North Korean defectors today shows that the future Korea will face difficulties in social integration.