Business circles kickstart daily life recovery... Resuming company dinners and business trips

Samsung Electronics Eases Quarantine Guidelines
POSCO Suspends Remote Work

An announcement stating that rapid antigen testing will be suspended from the 11th is placed at the temporary screening clinic set up at Seoul Station Plaza on the 10th, as the number of COVID-19 confirmed cases continues to decline. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Hyun-seok] Major South Korean conglomerates including Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motor, and Kia are starting to resume normal daily activities. In line with the government's easing of 'social distancing' measures, they are restarting domestic and international business trips and reducing the proportion of remote work.

According to the business community on the 11th, Samsung Electronics decided to promote a 'partial return to normal' starting today and announced the relaxed quarantine guidelines internally.

First, face-to-face meetings, group training sessions, and business trips, which had been prohibited, were partially resumed. Domestic and international business trips were changed from 'discouraged' to permitted. Events that were previously banned can now be held with up to 299 attendees. Company dinners are allowed with up to 10 people if organized by the department head, and shuttle buses for work can be used on a limited basis.

However, guidelines such as mandatory mask-wearing, maintaining about 50% occupancy density, and basic workplace quarantine measures will remain in place. The policy allowing up to 50% remote work also remains unchanged. This is understood to be in consideration of the daily domestic COVID-19 cases exceeding 200,000.

Earlier, POSCO switched to a full attendance system this month for employees working at the POSCO Center and POSCO Tower in Gangnam, Seoul, and the Songdo office in Incheon. The suspension of remote work applies only to office workers. However, remote work will continue for pregnant employees, those with underlying health conditions, employees designated as government co-quarantine subjects, and those awaiting test results.

Hyundai Motor and Kia have maintained the policy of over 50% remote work. However, guidelines regarding domestic and international business trips, training, meetings, and non-work-related activities have been changed. Domestic business trips are now fully permitted; previously, they were allowed only for vaccinated individuals.

International business trips remain limited but with slightly relaxed approval criteria. For training and meetings, which were exceptionally allowed only in non-face-to-face formats, 'non-face-to-face' is still recommended, but face-to-face formats are now permitted. Additionally, non-work-related activities, which were previously banned, have been changed to 'discouraged.'