"Let's Just Go with Step 3" Desperate Self-Employed at the Brink, Tearful Plea

Some Self-Employed Appeal "2.5~3 Steps Are Meaningless, Just Strengthen Quarantine"
59% Say Social Distancing '2.5 Steps' Appropriate... 31% Support Raising to 'Step 3'
KB Securities: Annual Growth Rate May Drop 0.4%p if Step 3 Enforced for 2 Weeks

On the morning of the 31st, Euljiro Food Alley in Jung-gu, Seoul. Amid the implementation of social distancing level 2.5, the area appears quiet. Photo by Seunggon Han hsg@asiae.co.kr

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] "I just wish they would raise it straight to level 3 and completely end COVID-19."

From the 30th, the Seoul metropolitan area has implemented social distancing at level 2.5, pushing self-employed business owners to the brink. Level 2.5 is a measure equivalent to level 3, which causes severe social and economic damage, but instead of going directly to level 3, it introduces strengthened quarantine measures only for facilities and places with a high risk of infection.

Under this measure, for the next week, general restaurants, snack bars, and bakeries in the metropolitan area will be restricted to takeout and delivery orders only from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. the next day, and franchise coffee shops will be limited to takeout and delivery orders regardless of business hours.

Indoor sports facilities such as gyms, billiard halls, and golf practice ranges, as well as reading rooms and study cafes, will be closed, and academies must conduct non-face-to-face classes.

Given this situation, some self-employed business owners are calling for raising the social distancing level even further to strongly control COVID-19 through rigorous quarantine measures. They point out that there is little difference between level 2.5 and level 3 from the owners' perspective, making the quarantine ambiguous and not effectively controlling the virus.

Kim, a restaurant owner in his 40s whom we met in a busy area of Jung-gu, Seoul, said, "Self-employed business owners like restaurant owners are really struggling right now," adding, "Level 2.5 is fine, but level 3 is the same for us; we are all in a tough situation." He expressed frustration, saying, "Business is not going well anyway," and appealed, "Just strengthen the quarantine and completely control COVID-19."

On the morning of the 31st, a visitor logbook at a cafe in Euljiro, Jung-gu, Seoul. Due to the implementation of social distancing level 2.5, consumption of coffee and other beverages inside is prohibited, and only takeout is allowed. Photo by Han Seung-gon hsg@asiae.co.kr

Park, a company employee in his 40s who supplies daily necessities to department stores, said, "Due to COVID-19, not only have new contracts with clients stopped, but sales have also declined," adding, "I hope for stronger quarantine measures. Even if business operations are suspended, it's equally difficult."

In fact, sales in the service industry, including self-employed businesses, have been continuously declining. Since the start of social distancing due to the outbreak of COVID-19 earlier this year, service industry sales decreased by 5.0% in March, 6.1% in April, and 4.0% in May compared to last year. Especially, temporary and daily workers were hit hard, with 420,000 and 173,000 fewer workers in March, and 587,000 and 195,000 fewer in April, respectively.

Another restaurant owner in his 30s, Lee, shared a similar opinion. Lee said, "It's been a long time since sales were hit. We can't even see customers on weekends," adding, "Whether it's level 2.5 or 3, business is not going well anyway. I think it's better to enforce stronger quarantine measures and quickly end this tiresome COVID-19 situation." He continued, "The problem is rent. I hope there will be policies to exempt rent for self-employed business owners."

Opinions among citizens observing this situation are divided. Kim, a man in his late 30s working in Seoul, said, "I understand that implementing level 3 social distancing is practically like locking down the city. While some self-employed business owners may endure this situation, there will certainly be those who collapse. A cautious decision is needed."

On the 30th, as the novel coronavirus infection rapidly spread mainly in the metropolitan area and social distancing level 2.5 was implemented, the area near Hongdae Entrance in Mapo-gu, Seoul, showed a quiet scene. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

On the other hand, another office worker in his 40s, Lee, emphasized, "Everyone is already struggling, so I just want stronger quarantine measures to quickly end the COVID-19 situation." He added, "I also hope the government will strongly respond to violations of quarantine rules, such as churches not following non-face-to-face worship guidelines."

While social distancing level 2.5 is in effect, a public opinion poll shows that some support raising it to level 3.

According to a survey conducted by Realmeter on the 28th at the request of YTN (with a 95% confidence level and a sampling error of ±4.4 percentage points), 59.5% of respondents said that extending social distancing at level 2 was an "appropriate decision considering the overall economic impact." Meanwhile, 31.3% responded that "it should be raised immediately to level 3 to prevent the spread." "Don't know" accounted for 9.2%.

Among progressives (71.2%) and moderates (58.5%), the majority responded that it was an "appropriate measure." Conversely, among conservatives, the response for "appropriate measure" (41.1%) was slightly less than for "raise to level 3" (44.9%) within the margin of error.

By region, Daejeon, Sejong, and Chungcheong had the highest percentage of "appropriate measure" responses at 77.2%, followed by Gyeonggi and Incheon (66.2%) and Seoul (51.9%). In contrast, in Busan, Ulsan, and Gyeongnam, the response for "raise to level 3" (49.6%) was slightly higher than "appropriate measure" (46.2%).

KB Securities analyzed that if social distancing level 3 is implemented for two weeks in the metropolitan area, the annual growth rate will decrease by 0.4 percentage points, and if level 3 measures are expanded nationwide, the growth rate will drop by 0.8 percentage points.

Meanwhile, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency's Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters announced that as of midnight on the 30th, there were 248 new confirmed COVID-19 cases, an increase of 248 from the same time the previous day. This marks the second consecutive day with over 200 cases.

Of the 248 new cases, 238 were domestic infections, and 10 were imported cases. Among the 238 domestic cases, 91 were in Seoul, 79 in Gyeonggi, and 13 in Incheon, totaling 183 cases in the metropolitan area.