S.Korean employees back to remote working as country braces for worst-ever COVID-19 wave

South Korea's large corporations are ordering employees to work remotely as the country braces for the fourth wave of COVID-19 with the daily caseload rising to an all-time high of 1,316.

The South Korean government will implement the strictest Level 4 distancing rules for Seoul and its surrounding areas from Monday.

There would be a ban on gatherings of three or more persons after 6 pm and all schools would be conducting classes online.

SK Corp. and battery maker SK Innovation were among the first to completely switch to remote work, excluding essential staff.

LG Group increased its work-from-home policy from 40 percent remote to 50 percent. On Monday, the conglomerate would ban all business trips, meetings with external personnel, and job training that requires gathering.

Samsung Electronics had not yet made companywide virus precautions, leaving that up to teams and divisions to decide, but is expected to soon unveil its measures.

Some companies operating large-scale manufacturing facilities are scheduled to begin vaccinating factory workers at in-house clinics this month.