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The South Korean Ministry of Employment and Labor has dismissed NewJeans' Hanni's claims of facing workplace bullying at HYBE, The Korea Times reported on November 20, 2024. The Ministry reportedly said the K-pop idol does not qualify as a worker under the Labor Standards Act.
The Ministry of Employment and Labor found it challenging to consider Hanni as a worker under the Labor Standards Act who does labor for a wage in an employer-employee relationship. This is due to the terms and clauses of the management contract she signed with HYBE and ADOR as a K-pop idol (celebrity).
"Based on the nature and terms of the management contract signed by Pham Hanni (Hanni’s real name), she cannot be considered an employee under the Labor Standards Act, as her work does not fall under a subordinate relationship for wages," an official from the Ministry of Employment and Labor added (as translated by Allkpop).
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According to Article 76, Paragraph 2 of the South Korea Labor Law Act, neither an employer nor an employee may use their superiority or other advantages to inflict physical or psychological harm on other employees. However, since Hanni doesn't fall under the purview of a worker under the act, her claims were dismissed.
What was the original allegation by NewJeans' Pham Hanni against HYBE?
On October 15, Hanni appeared at the National Assembly Audit as a witness to discuss workplace harassment. Hanni claimed that she was on her way to the styling room on the fourth floor of the HYBE building when she came across another HYBE idol group.
She alleged that she greeted the group and its manager, but while passing them, she overheard the manager telling the group to "ignore" her. She made the same allegations during a YouTube livestream (now deleted) on September 11, 2024.
She also claimed that some HYBE employees badmouthed her and her bandmates on the BLIND app.
"Recently I saw on Blind, the Hybe employees cursing at NewJeans and I heard the recording of the HYBE PR team downplaying our success, seeing this confirmed that what I was feeling wasn’t just a feeling, I knew that the company HYBEahated us," she claimed during the Natinal Assembly audit.
For the unversed, BLIND is a Korean app used by HYBE employees that allows users to conceal their real identities and discuss matters.
Soon after Hanni's allegations, a netizen on the Korean online forum, Nate Pann, accused Belift Lab and ILLIT's manager of mistreating Hanni. Belift Lab faced online backlash after the post went viral on X. Korea JoongAng Daily reported on October 8, 2024, that Belift Lab denied allegations that one of its managers instructed ILLIT to ignore Hanni.
As per Allkpop's translation, the HYBE subsidiary label issued an official statement clarifying speculations by fans and said:
"The protocol team member (manager) of ILLIT never made the remark 'ignore her' about any NewJeans member, and the ILLIT members have never passed by the NewJeans members without greeting them."
Later, on November 12, 2024, NewJeans sent a certified letter to the parent company and its subsidiary, ADOR, demanding reinstating Min Hee-jin as the CEO. The group asked HYBE to identify the ILLIT manager and demanded the person apologize to Hanni for their remark. NewJeans threatened to terminate their group contract if their demands were not fulfilled.
The group demanded that all their demands should be fulfilled by the end of November 2024. However, on November 20, Star News reported that the former CEO of ADOR and producer of NewJeans, Min Hee-jin, announced that she was resigning from HYBE and as a board member of ADOR.
She said she would take necessary actions against HYBE after being fired as ADOR's CEO in August 2024.
"I am resigning as an inside director of Adore today. I will also terminate the shareholder agreement I signed with HYBE and hold HYBE legally responsible for the violation of the shareholder agreement. In addition, I will take necessary legal action against HYBE and its associates for their numerous illegal acts," Min Hee-jin said.
In other news, Belift Lab sued Min Hee-jin on November 18, 2024, for defamation and demanded 2 billion KRW (approximately $1.4 million) in damages. Min Hee-jin previously accused Belift Lab of plagiarising NewJeans' choreography, concept, and planning proposal to debut ILLIT.
