SEOUL, Jan. 28 (Korea Bizwire) — Owners of restaurants, internet cafes and other small businesses called on the government Thursday to extend their opening hours and compensate their losses amid ongoing restrictions caused by the coronavirus pandemic. At a press conference outside the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae, leaders of small business groups said the [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea on Tuesday unveiled a 9.3 trillion-won (US$8.49 billion) relief package aimed at helping small businesses hit hard by virus restrictions and self-employed workers reeling from the economic fallout of the new coronavirus pandemic. The third emergency relief handout is anticipated to lend a hand to 5.8 million [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 22 (Korea Bizwire) — The coronavirus pandemic has ravaged small businesses around the country. But nowhere in the country is the devastation more visible than in Myeongdong, the popular shopping district among foreign travelers in central Seoul. The usually bustling streets, lined with cosmetics and souvenir shops, food stands and restaurants offering menus [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 30 (Korea Bizwire) — The Seoul city government is offering zero-interest loans to small businesses impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. Under the program launched Monday, a total of 300 billion won (US$255 million) will be offered at a 0.03-0.53 percent interest rate to businesses that were forced to close or restrict services under [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 11 (Korea Bizwire) — With South Korea’s self-employed and small businesses going through extremely tough times due to the resurgence of COVID-19, nationwide efforts are underway to help them overcome the hardships. A 39-year-old woman surnamed Kim who runs a small donut shop in Seoul has suffered from sluggish sales since the recent [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 31 (Korea Bizwire) — The Ministry of Employment and Labor has announced plans to allow pregnant employees from small businesses to work from home, as part of its efforts to curtail the coronavirus spread. Employers can apply for a ‘work-from-home financing program’ for pregnant employees or those with an elementary school child at [...]
SEOUL, March 11 (Korea Bizwire) — The majority of small businesses feel that the “rent reduction campaign” initiated to help merchants struggling due to the coronavirus outbreak has had no practical effect, a recent survey revealed. A survey of 1,080 small business owners nationwide conducted by the Korea Federation of Micro Enterprise showed that 90.3 [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 27 (Korea Bizwire) — South Koreans afraid of the new coronavirus are increasingly staying away from public places, wreaking havoc for small businesses nationwide and driving many of them to the brink of their worst-ever crisis. Diminished sales are a particularly serious problem in Daegu, about 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, and the [...]
SEOUL, Jun. 3 (Korea Bizwire) — The culture of so-called ‘work and life balance’ is spreading throughout small and medium sized firms in South Korea through various policies including a four-day workweek and special leaves of absence offered between national holidays. Small and medium-sized companies are beginning to offer various welfare incentives, pointed a major [...]
SEOUL, Jul. 13 (Korea Bizwire) — Owners of mom-and-pop stores on Friday called on the government to freeze the minimum wage in 2019, claiming rising labor costs will seriously impact their profitability. If the government moves to raise the minimum hourly wage from the current 7,530 won, the Korea Federation of Micro Enterprise (KFME) won’t [...]