Lee Byeong-gweon, the second Vice Minister of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, met with small business owners to exchange views on strengthening the social safety net, including expanding the employment insurance premium support program.
The Vice Minister held a "policy roundtable on strengthening the social safety net for small business owners" in Jung District, Seoul, on the 8th. The roundtable was attended by small business owners who succeeded in restarting their businesses after receiving unemployment benefits, newly enrolled self-employed subscribers to employment insurance, insurance experts, private non-life insurers, and officials from the Small Enterprise & Market Service (SEMAS).
A small business owner who succeeded in restarting a business said, "Thanks to premium support, I was able to enroll in employment insurance, and the unemployment benefits were a big help in maintaining a livelihood after closing and preparing to start again." Another small business owner who recently newly enrolled in employment insurance also said that premium support from the central and local governments influenced the decision to enroll.
The Small Enterprise & Market Service disclosed statistics showing that new applicants for premium support increased by about 30% from a year earlier. This is the result of the government and 17 metropolitan and provincial governments nationwide establishing a support system for employment insurance premiums for the self-employed. As premium support is leading to an expansion in new employment insurance enrollments, opinions were also raised that support needs to be expanded.
Participants also discussed the need to supplement the social safety net during temporary business suspension. An expert noted, "Employment insurance and the Yellow Umbrella Mutual Aid are important systems to prepare for after closure," but pointed out, "They have limits in compensating for income gaps and management crises that occur during the suspension stage."
A private insurance official said, "While various policy insurances operate in the agriculture and fisheries sectors, a policy insurance that guarantees the business suspension risk of small business owners has not yet been prepared," and suggested, "It is necessary to consider introducing small business owner–tailored policy insurance in which government policy insurance and private insurance complement each other."
The Vice Minister said, "Through cooperation between the government and 17 metropolitan and provincial governments nationwide, the foundation for supporting employment insurance premiums for the self-employed is expanding significantly," adding, "We will continue to expand premium support and fill the policy gaps during the suspension stage to build a social safety net for small business owners that connects suspension, closure, and another try."