K-pop idols aren't workers, pronounces South Korea
The Seoul Regional Office of Employment and Labor recently wrapped up its investigation into the alleged harassment against NewJeans member, Hanni. The inquiry was launched after the Vietnamese-Australian singer alleged during a YouTube livestream in September that a manager of another K-pop group under the HYBE umbrella (allegedly ILLIT) told their artists to "ignore" her inside the HYBE HQ in Seoul. However, it was dismissed on Wednesday (November 20) due to legal complications surrounding her employment status.
Hanni's employment status under scrutiny
The Labor office said, "It is difficult to consider HANNI a worker under the Labor Standards Act, so the case was administratively closed." This conclusion is based on an examination of Hanni's management contract with ADOR, a HYBE sub-label. The office noted that the contract didn't put her in a subordinate relationship for wages but as an equal contracting party. So, since she's not exactly a worker, she won't be protected by labor laws.
Ministry of Labor outlined reasons for dismissal
The Ministry of Labor gave a number of reasons to reject Hanni's bullying claims as workplace harassment. They said she doesn't qualify for fixed working hours or locations as an employee and the payments she received were more like profit-sharing than wages for her labor. They also said both Hanni and the company share financial burdens of her entertainment activities and she also bears the risk of profit or loss from them.
Hanni's emotional testimony and allegations of disrespect
In a tearful testimony last month, Hanni told the National Assembly's Environment and Labor Committee about an incident where she was told to be ignored by other artists. She also said she felt consistently undermined and disrespected by her company's management team. "I was honestly convinced that the company hated us," she said, adding that these were not isolated incidents. Notably, all NewJeans members have sided with Min Hee-jin, former head of ADOR, in her messy fight with HYBE.
