Small Business Association "Urgent Need for Realistic Compensation... Also Request to Ease Operating Hour Restrictions"

[Asia Economy Reporter Suyeon Woo] On the 31st, small business organizations protested the government's decision to extend the current social distancing measures and the ban on private gatherings of five or more people for an additional two weeks, urging compensation for the actual business losses incurred.

Namsoo Cha, Head of Policy and Public Relations at the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business, stated, "Many small business owners are very disappointed as the government and ruling party initially appeared to promise compensation for business losses caused by COVID-19 but then seemed to shift toward providing a fourth round of disaster relief funds."

He added, "There must be fair compensation for small business owners who have quietly followed government guidelines so far," emphasizing, "The government and the National Assembly should take the lead in preparing realistic and prompt legislative measures."

Additionally, small business groups demanded that the current business hour restrictions be extended from 9 p.m. to midnight. Sungwon Lee, Secretary General of the Korea Federation of Small Business Owners and Self-Employed, pointed out, "The business hour restrictions remain unchanged, causing significant frustration among self-employed individuals," and criticized, "The ruling party says there will be no compensation or retroactive application, yet the quarantine measures remain, which inevitably causes problems."

Okbok Kwon, Executive Vice President of the Korea Foodservice Industry Association, also said, "We expected either the ban on private gatherings of five or more people or the business hour restrictions after 9 p.m. to be lifted, but both remain, pushing restaurant owners to their limits of patience," demanding, "Please partially lift the business hour restrictions and relax the ban on gatherings of five or more people to around ten."

On the morning of the 29th, a view of Myeongdong Street, one of Seoul's key commercial districts / Photo by Yonhap News

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