[Column] Communication Breakdown in Quarantine Driving Self-Employed to the Brink

The spread of COVID-19 and the strengthening of quarantine measures are deepening the worries of self-employed workers. On the 16th, an employee is wiping a table at a restaurant in Jung-gu, Seoul. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] The phased return to normal life (With Corona) vanished like a daydream in just 45 days. For self-employed individuals whose sales plummeted due to social distancing measures lasting over a year, the past 45 days were too short to harbor hope of recovery.

Park Jongchan (37, pseudonym), a self-employed person met during a weekend university district report, is considering closing his business. Running a small pub, Park experienced a 50% drop in sales compared to before the COVID-19 outbreak, struggling with business difficulties. After the transition to With Corona, sales recovered to about 80% of pre-COVID-19 levels, rekindling a spark of hope. However, with the sudden introduction of the vaccination certificate and negative test confirmation system (quarantine pass) and operating hour restrictions equivalent to social distancing level 4, sales sharply dropped again by half.

Park explained, "Due to the nature of the pub, most customers come during nighttime hours, but the operating hour restrictions caused sales to plummet again," adding, "The government, which promised a return to normal life during the With Corona transition, only strengthened unilateral quarantine measures, making it impossible to continue business amid such uncertainty."

The disappointment felt by self-employed individuals stems from the government's claim at the time of the With Corona transition that daily confirmed cases of up to 10,000 could be tolerated. Since the government had already anticipated the current situation, there could have been sufficient communication before announcing strengthened quarantine measures such as operating hour restrictions, but no such efforts were made. Even Park had hired two part-time workers for the hall in consideration of year-end reservations, but recently had to cancel their employment due to the strengthened distancing measures.

Ultimately, self-employed individuals are taking to the streets. The National Emergency Countermeasures Committee for Self-Employed in Response to COVID-19 condemned in a statement, "The government and quarantine authorities irresponsibly shifted the burden onto the self-employed once again." What the government needs now is communication and policy consistency. Due to quarantine measures that violate even the standards set by the government itself, self-employed individuals are losing the small hope they had. It is time for the government to give up on the year-end peak season and listen to the voices of self-employed people who will take to the streets.