Mart Union: "9 PM Closing Time Must Be Implemented Nationwide"

"Large Mart Must Be Included in Gathering Ban Facilities Under Social Distancing Level 3"

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-sun] The Mart Labor Union has called for the nationwide expansion and implementation of restrictions on large mart operations. The reason is to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) and to secure the safety and health rights of mart workers. The government moved the operating hours of large marts forward by two hours starting from the 5th.

On the 15th, the Mart Labor Union issued a statement saying, "Large marts are crowded with people trying to buy daily necessities and are directly exposed to the risk of COVID-19 infection," adding, "Social distancing is becoming meaningless due to the many customers flooding into the stores. Every day, confirmed cases visit large marts, and quarantine and testing are being conducted for workers suspected of close contact, causing store operations to be frequently halted." They appealed, "Preemptive quarantine measures by health authorities are necessary to protect the public and mart workers."

Along with this, the union emphasized that if social distancing is raised to level 3, large marts should be included as restricted facilities. When social distancing reaches level 3, large distribution facilities such as department stores, complex shopping malls, and outlets (retail stores over 300㎡) are subject to assembly bans and business suspension. Although large marts fall under large distribution facilities in terms of area, they are also classified as ‘essential facilities’ handling daily necessities, so it is unclear whether they are exempt from the assembly ban. The union stated, "Since important daily necessities can be sufficiently purchased through small and medium-sized businesses and nearby stores, there is no reason to exclude large marts from restricted facilities," and added, "Large marts are large-scale assembly facilities where many customers gather, so they must be included in the assembly ban measures at COVID-19 level 3, and safety measures for customers and workers must be implemented."

They also expressed concern about possible layoffs and livelihood insecurity for mart workers receiving minimum wage due to store closures and operational suspensions. The union said, "While aggressive expansion of the government’s social safety net and disaster relief funds is necessary, what is most important is that employers make efforts to prevent layoffs and livelihood insecurity," and warned, "The problem should not be solved by shifting all responsibility for the management crisis onto the workers."

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