Song Chi-young, President of Sogongyeon, "Urgent Need to Improve Minimum Wage... Actively Responding to Delivery Fees"

On the 12th, Inaugural Press Briefing Held at the Korea Federation of Micro Enterprise
Promises Including Establishment of Internet Bank Specialized for Small Business Owners

Song Chi-young, chairman of the Korea Federation of Micro Enterprise Associations, identified "improving the minimum wage system" as the top priority during his term.

Song Chi-young, President of the Korea Federation of Micro Enterprises, is delivering an inaugural speech at the '10th Anniversary Ceremony of the Korea Federation of Micro Enterprises and the 5th President Inauguration Ceremony' held at the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business in Seoul on the 12th. Photo by Yonhap News

On the 12th, Chairman Song held a press conference commemorating his inauguration at the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business in Yeouido, Seoul, stating, "The minimum wage requires a lot of consideration and there are many hurdles to overcome, but it is the most important issue."

He continued, "I understand that other countries apply different minimum wages by industry and region," emphasizing, "I think it should be operated flexibly."

According to the Federation, the average sales per micro-enterprise in the third quarter of this year was approximately 43.31 million KRW, a decrease of 2.7% compared to the same period last year and 4.2% compared to the previous quarter. Operating profit per business was about 10.2 million KRW, down 1.3% year-on-year and 13.7% quarter-on-quarter. The total overdue loan amount for individual business owners in the third quarter reached 19.3 trillion KRW, a sharp increase of 78.7% from 10.8 trillion KRW the previous year. Among the total 3.679 million loan-holding businesses, about 709,000 were closed, accounting for 20%. The Federation stated, "Among OECD member countries, 19 have implemented differentiated application by industry, seniority, and region," and added, "It is necessary to apply minimum wages differently considering the characteristics of each industry."

He also expressed determination to resolve commission fee issues with delivery platforms such as Baedal Minjok and Coupang Eats. The Korea Federation of Micro Enterprise Associations has participated in the win-win council between delivery platforms and tenant businesses from the 1st to the 11th meeting as a representative of tenant businesses. Chairman Song explained, "Even 0.1% sustained daily for a year amounts to an enormous sum," and said, "The Federation will actively respond."

Regarding the Ministry of Employment and Labor's announcement to expand the application of the Labor Standards Act to workplaces with fewer than five employees, Chairman Song criticized, "We are not prepared at this time," and added, "This year is called the era of one million closures, so I think the timing is inappropriate."

At the inauguration ceremony held that morning, Chairman Song stated, "Based on the history of leading the establishment of laws and systems necessary for micro-enterprises up to the enactment of the Micro Enterprise Basic Act, we will continuously revise laws and systems that bring unfairness, irrationality, and inequality to micro-enterprises and lead a micro-enterprise-friendly management environment," emphasizing, "We will seek solutions to unresolved issues from the last National Assembly, such as the Micro Enterprise Welfare Act, the Special Act on Micro Enterprise Workforce Support, and the reform of the minimum wage system."

He added, "Based on the regional micro-enterprise associations established in local governments nationwide, we will build regional hubs to jointly solve difficulties in finance, taxation, and policies faced by micro-enterprises," and said, "We will also lead the establishment of specialized internet banks for micro-enterprises to enhance their self-sustainability, the introduction of specialized mutual aid associations, improvement of micro-enterprise credit evaluation methods, and inclusive micro-enterprise financial policies."