Will It Be a 'Danbi' for Long-Term Unpaid Leave Workers? ... Gyeongnam Province Provides Emergency Living Expenses Support

Gyeongsangnam-do Provincial Government Building Exterior

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kang Sharon] Gyeongnam Province announced on the 26th that it will launch the 'Emergency Living Expense Support Project' from the 27th to assist long-term unpaid leave workers who fall into the blind spots of various support policies.

The province explained that it supports long-term unpaid leave workers who are on leave due to workplace management crises and are struggling to maintain their livelihoods due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic but have not received various disaster relief funds because of their previously high income.

Long-term unpaid leave workers have already exhausted social security benefits such as employment retention subsidies and are excluded from the 'Gyeongnam-type Emergency Disaster Relief Fund' given to the bottom 50% income earners and the Ministry of Employment and Labor's COVID-19 Regional Employment Response Special Support Project, which provides living expenses to unpaid leave workers in workplaces with fewer than 50 employees.

The province has allocated 450 million KRW of provincial funds to implement the emergency living expense support project for these long-term unpaid leave workers.

The support targets workers employed in workplaces with 50 or more employees within the province who have experienced unpaid leave for six months or more within the past year due to management crises and are enrolled in employment insurance.

Following the Ministry of Employment and Labor's standards for living expense support for unpaid leave workers, a one-time payment of 500,000 KRW will be provided in cash.

Applications can be submitted by visiting the Labor Policy Division of the provincial government office or by mail with the required documents by the 5th of next month. After screening, about 900 people will be selected for support.

To facilitate applicants, the province plans to actively promote one-stop administration by visiting workplaces with 50 or more long-term unpaid leave workers to receive support applications directly.

Kim Ki-young, Director of the Job Economy Bureau of Gyeongnam Province, said, "We hope this project will help workers who fall into the blind spots of disaster support policies regain stability in their lives," adding, "The province will do its best to protect vulnerable workers facing livelihood crises due to COVID-19."

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