President Moon: "Maintaining Employment is Really Important in the COVID Situation"

Cheong Senior Secretary and Advisor Meeting, Directs Employment Measures for 20s... "If Situation Requires Strengthening Quarantine Again, Must Precisely Analyze Impact on Small Business Livelihoods"

[Asia Economy Reporters Ryu Jeong-min and Kim Dong-pyo] President Moon Jae-in emphasized that maintaining employment during the 'novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19)' situation is truly important and called for countermeasures.

On the 14th, Kang Min-seok, the Blue House spokesperson, introduced President Moon's private remarks made during the senior secretaries and aides meeting, stating, "(President Moon said) maintaining employment during the COVID situation is really important. Increasing the budget alone is not enough. He mentioned that a significant number of people who lose their jobs do not regain employment even after the crisis ends."

President Moon expressed concern that a delayed first employment period for people in their 20s could have long-lasting aftereffects. He urged continuous consideration of appropriate and efficient measures such as employment retention subsidies. Spokesperson Kang explained, "This remark came after a report that 1.3 trillion won was provided as employment retention subsidies supporting wages during leave, which helped preserve 650,000 jobs."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Additionally, Spokesperson Kang added, "(President Moon) also mentioned the balance between quarantine and the economy, stating that if there are future situations requiring strengthened quarantine measures, a precise analysis should be conducted on how much these measures affect the livelihoods of small business owners."

Spokesperson Kang conveyed, "(President Moon) said that when business hours were restricted to 9 p.m., decisions should be made by comparatively analyzing how much sales decreased. It is time to conduct such precise analyses to ensure that expectations and actual results do not differ."

Spokesperson Kang explained, "This does not mean proposing to reinstate the 9 p.m. business hour restriction, but rather emphasizing that if, in the prolonged situation, it becomes unavoidable to adjust quarantine measures again, actions should be taken based on accurate data."

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