Large Corporations Strengthen Internal Manuals for Level 3 Response... Expanding Remote Work and Meal Separation

[Asia Economy Reporters Hyewon Kim and Soyeon Park] Major domestic conglomerates are also raising their COVID-19 response levels to the highest stage in preparation for a possible escalation to social distancing level 3.

According to the industry on the 27th, major conglomerates such as Samsung, Hyundai Motor, SK, LG, and POSCO are proceeding with internal arrangements to significantly expand remote work in accordance with government guidelines to strengthen COVID-19 prevention measures. When social distancing level 3 is implemented, the government recommends that private companies have all employees work from home except for about 30% of essential personnel. Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics, which had not introduced remote work for general office workers since the outbreak of COVID-19, are also making institutional changes one after another. POSCO is reviewing the implementation of remote work for all on-site employees except for factory shift workers in preparation for an escalation to social distancing level 3. Airlines also plan to expand remote work, leaving only job groups that require on-site work.

Separately from changes in work methods, infection control at production sites will be further strengthened. In particular, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are focusing on enhancing infection control at semiconductor production plants that must operate 24 hours a day, 365 days a year without stopping. Measures to reduce infection risk during meal times, when mask-wearing is impossible, are also notable. Hyundai Motor Group is promoting the first-ever staggered meal times, which are considered the highest risk for COVID-19 infection. This measure divides meal times by time slots for production and office workers to reduce congestion in company cafeterias. At Hyundai Motor’s Ulsan plant, production workers eat from 10:50 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., and office workers from 11:30 a.m. to 12:10 p.m., thereby reducing cafeteria congestion and maintaining social distancing, while installing permanent partitions between seats. Additionally, research staff meal times will be divided into groups A to D, operating a four-shift system with 30-minute intervals between 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. to stagger cafeteria usage.

Hyundai Motor Group has also established an in-house mask production system since July, anticipating the prolonged COVID-19 situation, producing 800,000 masks monthly. These masks are not for sale and are supplied to Hyundai Motor Group employees and their families worldwide. In preparation for possible workspace closures due to confirmed cases, alternative work centers have been set up at Mabuk Training Center (Hyundai Motor) and Yangji Training Center (Kia Motors) to perform essential tasks.

On-site facilities within companies will be suspended for the time being. POSCO plans to suspend operation of its in-house daycare centers and completely halt in-house training and workshops if social distancing level 3 is raised. Currently restricted activities such as business trips, dinners, and gatherings will be further tightened to bans. Samsung Electronics plans to strengthen its current level 2 manual to level 3 by prohibiting meetings of 20 or more people, enforcing a minimum 1.5-meter distance during meetings, and operating only 50% of seats on commuter buses.

Supply chain (value chain) management is also on high alert. The situation for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) supplying to large conglomerates is worsening, raising concerns about production disruptions due to potential supply chain breakdowns. Accordingly, major groups are re-examining the current status of their value chains assuming the worst-case scenario and have begun revising their manuals accordingly. A representative from one of the four major groups said, "When level 3 is implemented, we will additionally activate backup plans tailored to the characteristics of each workplace to prevent further in-house spread," adding, "We are also preparing for the possibility of factory shutdowns."

Kwon Hyuk-min, head of the Industrial Cooperation Team at the Federation of Korean Industries, said, "Companies are anxiously strengthening value chain management to prevent problems in parts procurement from recurring. Large conglomerates have systems in place, so the impact is somewhat less, but SMEs and self-employed businesses, which lack system infrastructure, could be directly hit in supply chain management by the resurgence of COVID-19."

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