Access to the Covid-19 Relief Programs Among Korean Small Business Owners

Background

The federal government provided generous Covid-19 relief programs for small business owners, including $835 billion for Paycheck Protection Program and $349 billion for the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) (Parlapiano et al., 2022; U.S. Government Accountability Office, 2023). We know little about the impacts of these relief programs, especially those on racialized small business owners.

To fill the gap in our knowledge, this qualitative study looks at Korean small business owners’ experience with the relief programs during the pandemic. We focus on Korean small business owners because the existing evidence suggests that Asian small business owners may be hit by the pandemic more severely than other groups, as indicated with a high business closure rate of 26% (Fairlie, 2020).

Methods

We use in-depth interview data collected from a convenience sample of 21 Korean small business owners and 2 professionals in the New York Metropolitan Area. We analyze recorded and transcribed interviews, using an inductive thematic analysis approach that identifies and analyzes themes (patterns) out of the data without a predetermined theoretical framework (Braun & Clarke, 2006).

Results

Qualitative data analyses show diverse experiences of accessing relief programs among interviewees. Although the majority received and benefited from various government reliefs (“I could survive thanks to PPP.... Many owners closed their business. I would be one of them”), two who opened their business immediately before the pandemic could not obtain these benefits because only those who paid tax in 2019 were eligible. Many interviewees also had a hard time accessing government benefits because of language barriers (“To us, English is not our first language... Native speakers of English obtained information much quicker than us. Accordingly, they received every benefit available and the maximum amount possible. However, it was extremely hard for us to apply for these benefits...We received much less than we deserve.”). Interviewees overcame the language barrier with information from various sources. First, interviewees received information from friends and relatives. Second, business associations and community organizations provided assistance in a more organized way than information networks (“I received tons of help from the Association of Korean Nail Salons and people I got to know through the Association. Those fluent in English in the Association helped me apply for government benefits... Because they also run business, they knew exactly what documents I needed.”) Third, Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), such as social media, is a good medium for information dissemination (“I owe a lot to YouTube. I learned from YouTube videos created by two CPAs in California. My CPA here knew less than me. I watched YouTube videos every day. While watching various YouTube videos, I kept records of information useful to me.”

Conclusions

Findings demonstrate the importance of language access and the resilience of Korean small business owners. Findings call for language assistance for all government policies to be inclusive of small business owners with limited English proficiency. The government may reach out to the target population of a policy through ICT and ethnic organizations.