The court has decided to uphold the fine imposed on former Adore CEO Min Hee-jin regarding allegations of workplace harassment.
Min Hee-jin's side believes that the fine imposed by the Ministry of Employment and Labor was incorrect and that the court has reduced it, stating that there are errors in the factual judgments accepted by the court, and they plan to contest this in a formal trial.
On the 16th, the 61st Single Judge of the Seoul Western District Court (Judge Jeong Cheol-min) held a summary trial for the fine dispute filed by former CEO Min against the Seoul Employment and Labor Office and upheld the fine against Min Hee-jin.
Min Hee-jin's side stated regarding the court's ruling, "The court determined that some of the fines imposed by the Ministry of Employment and Labor were incorrect and reduced the fine," claiming, "Thus, we have achieved a partial victory."
They added, "We believe there are errors in the legal principles and factual judgments accepted by the court, and we will address this again in a formal trial."
This case began with a complaint from a former Adore employee, A. A raised allegations of workplace harassment (verbal abuse) by Min Hee-jin and biased intervention in a sexual harassment incident involving the deputy representative last August. Additionally, in August of last year, A filed a lawsuit against Min and the deputy representative for defamation and violation of the Personal Information Protection Act, seeking damages.
A claimed that they appealed to Min regarding the harassment from the deputy representative, but Min covered it up and attempted to downplay the incident by protecting the deputy representative.
In this regard, the Seoul Employment and Labor Office stated, "Some of Min Hee-jin's remarks can cause physical and mental pain. Furthermore, they can worsen the working environment," determining that it constitutes workplace harassment. Regarding the sexual harassment incident, they stated, "Min Hee-jin communicated the investigation results to the deputy representative via company email and advised on objections. Such actions violate the obligation for objective investigation," and imposed a fine.
Min Hee-jin filed a lawsuit against the ruling. At that time, Min's side stated, "The Seoul Employment Office judged some of Min's remarks as workplace harassment and notified the fine in advance," and "We plan to proceed with formal objection procedures, including promptly submitting opinions to the administrative agency."
Meanwhile, former CEO Min is involved in legal disputes with multiple subsidiary labels, including HYBE. HYBE has filed a lawsuit against Min for the termination of a shareholder agreement, and Min has also filed a lawsuit regarding the payment for stock sales related to the exercise of a put option.
Additionally, Belift Lab and Source Music have each filed lawsuits against Min for damages amounting to approximately 2 billion won and 500 million won, respectively.
[Ji Seung-hoon, Star Today Reporter]
