Coronavirus prompts Korean firms to embrace telecommuting

SEOUL, Feb. 26 (UPI) -- A rising number of South Korean companies are requiring their employees to work from home to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19.

SK Group, one of the largest family-owned conglomerates in South Korea, announced Wednesday that its six affiliates would adopt a telecommuting plan for workers.

SK Telecom, the country's top mobile operator, encouraged about 70 percent of its staff to work remotely at least through March 1.

Online retailers and info-tech companies are also following suit.

EBay Korea, which operates Auction and GMarket, sent an email this week to its employees asking them to telecommute. Top e-commerce company Coupang took similar measures.

Naver, a leading web portal operator, instructed its employees not to travel if possible. Meanwhile, pregnant workers have been telecommuting.

South Korea has seen hundreds of new COVID-19 infections a day, with numbers exceeding 1,200 confirmed cases on Wednesday. South Korea has the second-largest cluster of COVID-19 outside China, where the outbreak started in December.

Seoul raised its virus alert to the highest level on Sunday.