Small Business Owners Express "Frustration Over Social Distancing Extension... Doubts About Policy Effectiveness"

'COVID-19 Closure' Self-Employed, Possible to Terminate Commercial Lease Contract Early
(Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Im Heon-jeong = Self-employed business owners who closed their businesses due to gathering restrictions and bans caused by the COVID-19 pandemic can now terminate their commercial lease contracts early.
Self-employed individuals who suffered from overdue monthly rent payments even after closing their stores due to a lack of customers will have some relief from their burdens.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on the 5th that the amendment to the "Commercial Building Lease Protection Act," which includes these provisions, was promulgated on the 4th and came into immediate effect.
The photo shows a rental information banner posted on a closed store in Myeongdong, Jung-gu, Seoul on this day. 2022.1.5
Photo by kane@yna.co.kr
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[Asia Economy Reporter Junhyung Lee] On the 14th, as the government decided to extend social distancing measures until the 6th of next month, including the Lunar New Year holiday, small business owners have expressed their opposition.

The Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business (KSMB) stated in a commentary that "small business owners and self-employed individuals, who cannot properly operate their businesses due to nationwide business restrictions and the implementation of the vaccine pass, cannot hide their great disappointment and frustration over this extension policy." They added, "Although the restriction on the number of people has been partially eased by allowing gatherings of up to six people, the business hours restrictions remain unchanged, making it difficult to significantly recover sales."

The KSMB criticized the effectiveness of the government's quarantine measures. They said, "We strongly demanded the extension of business hours, but even this reasonable request for the survival of small business owners was not accepted," and "Despite the ongoing special quarantine period, only the unilateral sacrifice of small business owners and self-employed individuals has been forced, raising doubts about the effectiveness of the government's policy to ease social distancing." They continued, "The current quarantine policy that restricts small business owners' right to operate through administrative orders is an extremely administratively convenient idea that shifts quarantine responsibility onto small business owners," and "We strongly urge the government to present a clear roadmap regarding the end date of business restrictions and the phased easing policy."

Social Distancing 'Gatherings of 6 People · Business Hours Until 9 PM' Applied for 3 Weeks
(Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Seungdoo = On the 14th, Kwon Deokcheol, Minister of Health and Welfare, made a joint government announcement on extending quarantine measures including social distancing adjustments and Omicron response plans at the briefing room of the Government Seoul Office. From the left: Kang Seongcheon, Vice Minister of SMEs and Startups; Hong Namgi, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance; Minister Kwon. 2022.1.14
kimsdoo@yna.co.kr
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They also emphasized the need to expand the budget for loss compensation. The KSMB said, "The government announced a supplementary budget of 14 trillion won along with the extension of quarantine measures," but "this plan is also insufficient to overcome the accumulated damage to small business owners and self-employed individuals and the damage caused by business restrictions that may continue indefinitely."

The KSMB stated, "The damage to small business owners caused by business restrictions must be compensated 100%," and "Fixed costs such as rent and labor costs must be fully supported, considering the situation of small business owners who have been driven into a corner by over two years of business restrictions." They added, "We should also consider that major advanced countries such as the United States, Japan, and France are already implementing similar policies through systems like the PPP."

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