Lee Jae-gap "We Must Prevent COVID-19 Spread During Commute... Please Utilize Flexible Work Arrangements"

Ministry of Employment Holds 'COVID-19 Employment and Labor Countermeasures Meeting'
Daegu and Gyeongbuk Suspend National Qualification Regular Testing for 2 Weeks

Minister Lee Jae-gap of the Ministry of Employment and Labor. / Photo by Moon Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] Lee Jae-gap, Minister of Employment and Labor, urged on the 24th to actively utilize family care leave and flexible working hours as measures to respond to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

On the morning of the same day, Minister Lee held a 'COVID-19 Employment and Labor Countermeasures Meeting' at the Seoul Regional Employment and Labor Office in Jung-gu, Seoul, and said, "Please actively use flexible working hours to reduce the possibility of infection spread due to congestion during commuting hours."

Minister Lee stated that employees of the Ministry of Employment and Labor headquarters, nationwide employment and labor offices, and related organizations will actively utilize flexible working hours such as staggered commuting hours.

He also requested, "Private companies should also utilize flexible working hours such as staggered commuting hours, staggered lunch and break times, and remote or telecommuting."

Additionally, he encouraged, "Workers who urgently need to care for their children at home should be guided to actively use family care leave along with annual leave." This measure follows the government's decision the previous day to postpone the new semester start date by one week for all kindergartens, elementary, middle, and high schools nationwide.

Furthermore, the Ministry of Employment and Labor plans to suspend group training for unemployment benefit recipients and postpone or replace group counseling for participants in youth job-seeking activity support funds and overseas employment support projects with telephone or online counseling. Support for employment retention subsidies for workplaces on temporary closure and workplace consultation for difficulties will continue.

In addition, for the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions designated as 'special infectious disease control areas,' activities of on-site support teams for labor time reduction, such as labor supervision, industrial safety supervision, and voluntary improvement support projects for working conditions, will be temporarily suspended.

Also, for handling reports such as complaints, accusations, and lawsuits, in-person investigations will be suspended for two weeks, and in unavoidable cases, schedule adjustments or telephone and mail investigations will be utilized. Issuance of the National Tomorrow Learning Card, training consultations, and employment success package consultations will all be replaced with telephone or online methods.

From tomorrow (the 25th), the national technical qualification regular examinations conducted in the Daegu and Gyeongbuk (Gyeongsan) areas will be temporarily suspended for two weeks. The extension of this suspension will be reviewed depending on the spread of the infectious disease.

Accordingly, regular examinations held at five test centers in Daegu and one in Gyeongsan, Gyeongbuk, will be suspended. This applies to 18 types of regular examinations, including Korean, Japanese, and Chinese cuisine cooking technician exams, beautician exams, and baking and pastry exams.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Employment and Labor plans to prioritize the distribution of about 130,000 masks (16%) out of the 800,000 masks in the second emergency support supply to vulnerable workplaces in the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions.