Coronavirus Infectious Disease-19 (Corona19) is affecting the nation's economy as a whole, and the next year's minimum wage review process has officially begun.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor said today (31st) that the Minister of Employment and Labor Lee Jae-gap sent a letter to the Minimum Wage Commission (hereinafter referred to as the 'Minimum Wage Commission') to review the minimum wage for next year.

Experts believe the Corona19 situation will be the biggest variable in the deliberation. This is because the corona 19 is more likely to have a tougher tug-of-war than any other year.

The working world has said that the livelihood of low-wage workers has become difficult, so the minimum wage must be raised above a certain level to stimulate the economy. On the other hand, the management industry is expected to demand a minimum wage freeze as self-employed and small and medium-sized enterprises have reached the limit of their wages.

Another reason for this deliberation is that the minimum wage increase rate this year was as low as 2.9%. This was because it was the third lowest rate of increase since 1998 when the International Monetary Fund (IMF) financial crisis was in full swing and in the aftermath of the global financial crisis.

If the Minimum Wage Committee deliberates and decides the minimum wage, the Ministry of Employment and Labor will finalize and announce it by August 5 according to the current minimum wage law.

This is 'News Pick'.

(Photo = Yonhap News)