Companies Planning New Year Workshops Despite COVID-19 Cases Surpassing 1,000

On the 7th, when the morning temperature in Seoul dropped to minus 15 degrees Celsius and a cold wave warning was issued, office workers near City Hall Station in Jung-gu, Seoul, were heading to work wearing thick coats. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Dong-hoon] Amid the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), controversy has arisen as some private companies plan to hold employee workshops. With quarantine authorities already imposing a nationwide ban on gatherings of five or more people and recommending restraint even in family gatherings, there are concerns that quarantine discipline may be lax.

According to related industries on the 8th, fashion brand A is planning a 1-night, 2-day workshop in mid-month with dozens of employees participating and has even booked accommodations. When some employees raised concerns, the company responded that they were "unaware of the extension of the ban on gatherings of five or more people." The company is reconsidering whether to proceed with the workshop after internal objections arose. An employee, Mr. Kim, said, "I was shocked to hear that they were going to hold a workshop amid the occurrence of COVID-19 cluster infections here and there," adding, "I don't understand why we have to have a workshop where many people stay and eat together in these times."

A publishing company located in Jongno-gu, Seoul, is planning a workshop involving all employees in the second half of the year, causing unrest internally. An employee, Mr. Park, said, "The company seems to expect immunity in the second half of the year once the COVID-19 vaccine is distributed," adding, "I don't understand why they are making plans and budgets right away when we don't even know when the vaccine will be administered or how the COVID-19 situation will develop."

Workshops have the advantage of promoting camaraderie among employees and strengthening teamwork. Some companies hold them annually as a regular event. Even during the COVID-19 spread phase, there appear to be cases where companies mechanically planned and actually carried out workshops early in the year. An employee of a startup, Mr. C, said, "Last November, when COVID-19 had calmed down, the company pushed for a workshop saying it was a 'scheduled event' and we went," adding, "There still seems to be a safety complacency thinking 'It's a small company, so what harm could there be?'"

So far, there have been no reported cluster infections through group gatherings such as workshops. This is because most companies have participated in quarantine efforts such as canceling internal and external events and switching to non-face-to-face formats to prevent the spread of COVID-19. However, there are concerns that if events that increase the risk of infection, like workshops, are forced to proceed, cluster infections could break out at any time. In November last year, a cluster infection case was reported where 64 related confirmed cases occurred after village chiefs and community leaders from Jinju went on a 3-day, 2-night training trip to Jeju Island. Professor Kim Woo-joo of Korea University Infectious Diseases Department said, "What matters is what activities are done when gathering," adding, "Events involving communal living such as meals and drinking can be risky. Not gathering is best."

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