Sim Sang-jung: "100 Trillion Won Emergency Corporate Relief Fund Should Support Companies That Do Not Undergo Restructuring for One Year"

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jinyoung] Sim Sang-jung, leader of the Justice Party, stated regarding the government's plan to provide 100 trillion won in emergency corporate relief funds that "support should be given only to companies that do not lay off workers." President Moon Jae-in announced on the 24th that "we will definitely prevent companies from going bankrupt due to the shock of COVID-19" and revealed plans to inject 100 trillion won in emergency corporate relief funds.

On the 29th, Sim held a press conference at the National Assembly and said, "The 100 trillion won corporate support announced by the government must be based on employment security," and "I request President Moon to declare a temporary ban on layoffs and to promote social dialogue to protect jobs."

He stated, "During financial crises such as the IMF crisis and other corporate crises, public funds were heavily invested, but workers faced large-scale restructuring," and "if the government's support policy this time does not firmly establish the principle of 'support without layoffs,' the same pattern will occur."

He added, "This is something that kills both workers and companies," and criticized, "Companies that receive government support will mass lay off workers."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

He continued, "We must also take a firm stance against companies that misuse government support funds by repurchasing their own shares or increasing executives' salaries," and "We need to take measures such as cutting off support for companies that violate these principles."

Later, in a meeting with reporters, Sim emphasized, "I believe the 100 trillion won corporate support measure is necessary. However, there must be principles." He said, "There have been cases like Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, where the government supported a failing company but executives' salaries actually increased. To prevent such deviations, support principles must be clearly defined."

Finally, he added, "The government's COVID-19 economic crisis recovery measures should focus on supporting companies that protect jobs and uphold the principle of shared suffering for coexistence," and "We must save people to save companies. People come first."

On the same day, Sim urgently proposed five measures including the corporate support plan. The main contents are ▲ payment of 1 million won disaster basic income to all citizens ▲ loan support for self-employed small business owners without queuing ▲ three months of livelihood support for 6.3 million unstable non-regular workers ▲ establishment of an emergency safety net for 6 million vulnerable groups for three months, among others.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.