Hanni, a member of girl group NewJeans, is not considered an employee by law, making her ineligible for protections against workplace harassment under the Labor Standards Act, according to a government ruling.
On September 11 during the NewJeans members' livestream, Hanni declared that she had been the victim of harassment at work. According to him, HYBE would have asked the other artists of the agency to ignore the members of NewJeans, and its new CEO would have refused to do anything.
Hanni says HYBE is asking some of its groups to ignore NewJeans
On October 15, the National Assembly's Environment and Labor Commission organized a parliamentary audit targeting the Economic, Social and Labor Council under the aegis of the Presidential Office and organizations affiliated with the Ministry of Employment and of Labor. The session focused on idol harassment and workplace harassment, making Hanni the first K-POP idol to attend a parliamentary audit. During the hearing, Hanni spoke in particular about the harassment she allegedly suffered within HYBE.
Hanni (NewJeans) in tears in front of the National Assembly to talk about the harassment she suffered at HYBE
On November 20, the Seoul Regional Labor and Employment Bureau announced that it had closed its investigation into a complaint filed by Hanni fans.
Hanni fans filed a complaint about this last September. However, according to the Regional Office, Hanni is not technically an employee of HYBE so she does not have access to the rights and protections enjoyed by employees.
The Bureau stated:
“We closed the case because it is difficult to consider Hanni as an employee defined by the Labor Standards Act. »
Under labor law, an employee is defined as being “a person, regardless of the type of profession, who offers work to a business or workplace for the purpose of earning wages”which means a relationship of subordination towards the employer. The government's decision specifies that the management contract between Hanni and ADOR is “an agreement between two equal parties”which prevents it from being considered in the eyes of the law as being a subordinate of the agency.
The labor office detailed:
“She was not subject to the same rules as the staff and personnel of the company, she did not have fixed working hours or a specific location, she shared the costs linked to the activity with the company , she received a share of profits rather than a salary, she paid her taxes as business income instead of a salary, and she assumed both profits and losses from her activities. »
Source : koreajoongangdaily
