Deputy Prime Minister Hong: "4th Wave Expands Hardship for Vulnerable Sectors... Special Management of Employment and Distribution"

Hong Nam-ki, Deputy Prime Minister for Economy and Minister of Economy and Finance Photo by Yonhap News

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Son Seon-hee] Hong Nam-ki, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, stated on the 19th, "Since early last month, due to the 4th wave of (COVID-19) spread, difficulties are expanding again, especially among workers in vulnerable industries," adding, "We will manage the employment and distribution situation after the 3rd quarter with extra care."

Regarding the '2021 2nd Quarter Household Trends Survey' released that day, Deputy Prime Minister Hong wrote on his social media (SNS), "The government will mobilize all available policy measures and exert maximum efforts to minimize the hardships faced by the public due to the current 4th wave of spread."

According to the Household Trends Survey announced by Statistics Korea, the average monthly income of households with one or more members nationwide (including agricultural, forestry, and fishery households) in the 2nd quarter of this year was 4,287,000 KRW, a 0.7% decrease compared to the same period last year. Although labor and business income increased, total income declined due to the base effect from the nationwide disaster relief fund distributed in the 2nd quarter of last year.

Deputy Prime Minister Hong evaluated the increase in labor and business income by stating, "During the 2nd quarter, with the easing of social distancing and improved quarantine conditions, the employment market recovered, leading to an increase in employed persons, a rebound in private consumption, and overall economic improvement, which resulted in a general improvement in market income conditions, especially among low-income groups." However, he added, "Despite the clear improvement in market income, total income decreased significantly due to the base effect of public transfer income such as the nationwide disaster relief fund."

Regarding the deterioration of income distribution indicators compared to the 2nd quarter of last year, he said, "Although the situation worsened compared to the 2nd quarter of last year when the effect of the nationwide disaster relief fund was significant, it is somewhat fortunate that the distribution situation improved compared to the 2nd quarter of 2019, before COVID-19," adding, "With some improvement in market income conditions compared to last year, the future is more important in terms of reducing COVID-19 disparities."

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