'Middle-aged Small Business Owners' Experience the Most Severe Psychological Pressure from COVID-19

Results of Corona Blue 'Noranusan Psychological Counseling' Service: 210 Consultations by March

Usage Status of the Yellow Umbrella Psychological Counseling Service. [Graph=Korea Federation of SMEs Yellow Umbrella Mutual Aid Association]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jong-hwa] Mr. A, in his 60s, who joined Noryanwoosan, experienced severe depression as his income sharply declined due to management difficulties after COVID-19. He had managed his store for over 30 years and overcame crises such as the IMF with diligence, but as sales plummeted due to COVID-19 and running the store became difficult, he felt extreme pain and mental limits over the past year. Upon learning about the 'Noryanwoosan Psychological Counseling Service,' Mr. A received counseling and was able to reestablish a hopeful outlook on life through two free mental health sessions.

It has been found that small business owners aged 40 to 60 suffer from severe psychological pressure due to COVID-19.

Noryanwoosan, operated by the Korea Federation of SMEs, launched the 'Noryanwoosan Psychological Counseling Service' on December 21 last year and conducted about 210 counseling sessions by March.

Looking at the counseling results by age, middle-aged groups accounted for about 90%, with those aged 60 and above (24.5%), 50s (31.1%), and 40s (32.1%), indicating that COVID blues have the greatest impact on middle-aged and older adults. By topic, counseling was received in the order of personal emotions such as interpersonal relationships (55.8%), family and children (22.1%), business stress (11.7%), and couples and opposite sex issues (10.4%).

As the number of small business owners experiencing severe psychological distress due to COVID-19 increases, Noryanwoosan expanded the 'Noryanwoosan Psychological Counseling Service' from two sessions to three starting from the 1st of this month, and in cases of considering business closure or crisis situations such as accidents, an additional two sessions can be provided, allowing up to five free counseling sessions.

The 'Noryanwoosan Psychological Counseling Service' can be applied for through the call center (1666-9988) or the Welfare Plus website (www.8899.or.kr). Currently, there is also an event providing Noryanwoosan masks when applying for psychological counseling.

Park Yong-man, head of the SME Federation's Mutual Aid Business Group, said, "We hope that Noryanwoosan customers facing difficulties can receive comfort and hope through more psychological counseling services," adding, "Along with mental health recovery support, we plan to introduce counseling in the field of oriental medicine health starting in June this year."

Meanwhile, Noryanwoosan, operated by the Korea Federation of SMEs, has 1.44 million registered members as of its 14th year since its launch in 2007, and provides various welfare services free of charge to its members, including legal, tax, and labor management consulting, business recovery support and capacity-building education, discounts on recreational facilities, comprehensive health checkups, and welfare mall discounts.

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