SMEs "If the 8-hour Overtime Sunset Passes, Small Business Owners Suddenly Become Lawbreakers"

On the 15th, Lee Young, Minister of SMEs and Startups, held a meeting with representatives of small and micro enterprises and small business owners at the Seoul Regional Headquarters of the Small and Medium Business Corporation in Geumcheon-gu, Seoul.

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Donghyun] Small and medium-sized business owners have requested measures such as the permanent establishment of the '8-hour additional extended working hours system,' which is currently allowed for companies with fewer than 30 employees, as the sunset of the system approaches at the end of this year.

On the 15th, Lee Young, Minister of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, held a meeting with representatives of small and micro enterprises from various industries such as manufacturing and software at the Seoul Regional Headquarters of the Small and Medium Business Corporation in Geumcheon-gu, Seoul. The meeting was organized to review the utilization status of the 8-hour additional extended working hours system and to hear voices from the field regarding various difficulties expected after the system’s expiration.

The 8-hour additional extended working hours system is a policy introduced in July last year for workplaces with fewer than 50 employees to alleviate the burden of the 52-hour workweek system for a certain period by allowing an additional 8 hours of extended work per week for workplaces with fewer than 30 employees. It is set to expire at the end of this year.

Ten industry representatives attending the meeting unanimously agreed that the 8-hour additional extended working hours system is very useful for responding to sudden orders and workforce allocation. They appealed that with severe labor shortages and economic difficulties, the termination of the 8-hour additional extended working hours system would leave no proper countermeasures, potentially causing a serious situation.

Im Kwonmook, CEO of Ajin Mold, who visited the site that day, said, "I discussed with representatives from the same industry about what to do if the system expires, and most opinions were that we would have no choice but to violate the law." He added, "There is a concern that small business owners could suddenly become lawbreakers."

Lee Sookyung, CEO of Comtree, also emphasized, "If the sunset comes, there will be no proper measures, leading to serious management deterioration such as productivity decline due to worsening labor shortages, delayed deliveries, and penalty payments." She added, "With already high exchange rates, high interest rates, and high prices, I hope the government will resolve the issue well."

Minister Lee said, "With the recent increase in platform workers and the reduction in foreign workforce entry due to COVID-19, labor shortages for small and micro enterprises have intensified." He continued, "From a macroeconomic perspective, with the triple burden of high interest rates and high prices, the difficulties of small and micro enterprises are further exacerbated, so it is necessary to maintain the 8-hour additional extended working hours until the situation improves." He added, "We will do our best to carefully understand the difficult situation faced by the industry and the actual use of additional extended working hours so that the system can be extended."

Meanwhile, Lee Jeongsik, Minister of Employment and Labor, recently announced plans to amend the Labor Standards Act to extend the validity period of the 8-hour additional extended working hours system by two years.

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