[New Year's Address] Korea Federation of SMEs Presents 5 Major Tasks for SMEs... "Resolving Polarization Among SMEs is the Top Priority"

Kim Ki-moon, President of the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business.
[Photo by Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business]

[Asia Economy Reporter Junhyung Lee] The Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business (Kbiz) proposed five major tasks for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), including resolving the polarization between large and small-medium enterprises, in its New Year's address.

In the New Year's address released on the 30th, Kbiz stated, "Next year will be a very important year for Korea and SMEs, as it will see the presidential election to elect a new leader and the 60th anniversary of the founding of Kbiz," adding, "We propose five major tasks for the leap forward of Korea and job creation." The five tasks proposed by Kbiz are ▲ resolving polarization between large and small-medium enterprises ▲ balancing labor and employment ▲ strengthening support for SMEs to respond to carbon neutrality and digital transformation ▲ boosting corporate morale ▲ and enhancing the role of cooperatives.

Kbiz identified resolving polarization between large and small-medium enterprises as the top priority. Kbiz said, "Large enterprises and SMEs must voluntarily create a culture of coexistence, and active policy support from the government is also necessary," adding, "Fair distribution of outcomes between large enterprises and SMEs is essential to increase jobs and growth through new investments."

The need to supplement the 52-hour workweek system was also emphasized. Kbiz argued, "There can be no labor without employment," and stated, "The playing field, which has tilted toward labor with minimum wage increases, the enforcement of the Serious Accident Punishment Act, and recent demands to apply the Labor Standards Act even to small business sites with fewer than five employees, must be corrected." It added, "The 52-hour workweek system should be supplemented to fit the reality of SMEs facing labor shortages," and "The rigid limit of 12 hours of overtime per week should be changed to a monthly limit of 52 hours so that it can be flexibly operated according to workload."

Kbiz also proposed measures to respond to carbon neutrality and digital transformation. To support SMEs in responding to carbon neutrality and digital transformation, Kbiz argued for the introduction of ▲ a delivery price linkage system ▲ an electricity rate system exclusively for SMEs ▲ expanding the role of SME cooperatives when supporting carbon reduction facilities ▲ spreading smart factories for SMEs' digital transformation ▲ and enacting the Online Platform Fairness Act.

Furthermore, it pointed out the need to realize corporate succession systems to boost corporate morale. Kbiz said, "The most important thing to boost corporate morale is the realization of corporate succession systems and regulatory reform," adding, "Korea should hasten institutional improvements to facilitate corporate succession, such as enacting a Small and Medium Enterprise Succession Support Act like Japan, so that many long-lived companies can emerge." It also stated, "Boldly abolishing various regulations that hinder the emergence of new industries and innovative growth to create a business-friendly environment will increase new investments and jobs."

The need to amend the Small and Medium Enterprise Cooperative Act was also raised. Kbiz said, "The role of cooperatives representing industries must be strengthened," adding, "To ensure that SME products receive their proper value, the Small and Medium Enterprise Cooperative Act should be amended so that inter-company transactions are not considered consumer injustice, allowing SMEs to conduct joint projects without concerns about collusion." It also said, "The 3rd Three-Year Plan for Revitalizing Small and Medium Enterprise Cooperatives (2022?2024) is the first policy to recognize the status of cooperatives as SMEs," and "It should include support measures that resonate with the field and are effective."

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