A former ADOR employee who claimed to be a victim of workplace sexual harassment has expressed distress and stress over the situation.
The former employee, identified as Ms. B, and was mentioned as "B" in the statement posted by CEO Min Hee Jin on her social media account, spoke to Xports News in a phone interview on the 13th, ahead of JTBC's 'Newsroom' broadcast. She stated, "I am furious at CEO Min's deception."
Ms. B decided to speak out to the media due to the explanation post that Min Hee Jin shared on her social media on July 31. Ms. B expressed her deep disappointment, stating that Min distorted and publicly shared the contents of their KakaoTalk messages without her consent in an attempt to clarify the controversy surrounding her.
Ms. B pointed out that the crucial details of the incident, which she had described in detail when reporting the sexual harassment, were not properly disclosed. She said, "I endured everything no matter what the situation was, but instead of apologizing, CEO Min distorted the KakaoTalk messages and made them public without my consent. The industry is small, so everyone around me knows that the KakaoTalk messages CEO Min posted are about me. I've received many concerned messages. Some people have misunderstood me, so it has been a very difficult situation."
Ms. B also recalled the situation when Min Hee Jin was "furiously uploading" her explanation posts on social media. "I didn't see CEO Min's Instagram stories in real-time. I worked late and went home late, so I didn't even check my phone and just went to sleep. I'm not even following CEO Min on Instagram, so I found out through messages from people around me. They were asking if the KakaoTalk messages that CEO Min posted were agreed upon or if there was anything strange about them, so I checked them out with confusion."
She continued, "I was stressed and cried the entire morning. I had affection for CEO Min and the ADOR organization. I even enjoyed steaming CEO Min's tracksuit with a steamer when we were on a business trip. I accompanied her on the 'Golden Disc' trip, and I even enjoyed doing various small tasks at the site. I was rather proud to be able to help Min and worked sincerely and diligently for several years. But now, with just one word, I've been portrayed as a crazy person and trampled on. Min puts in all the effort to protect her career, saying illegal KakaoTalk messages are not allowed, but are those rules an exception when it comes to me? I genuinely cried."
Previously, Min Hee Jin was embroiled in controversy when it was alleged that she sided with Executive A and ignored Ms. B, the victim when the sexual harassment incident within ADOR came to light. Min explained that the allegations were "distorted" and claimed that the situation was resolved well due to her intervention and mediation. However, Ms. B expressed her discomfort with this.
Ms. B stated, "From my perspective, calling it 'mediation' itself is an exaggeration. The only time CEO Min acted as a mediator between me and Executive A was after I resigned and sent her a KakaoTalk message. A more appropriate term would be 'attempted mediation.' While CEO Min did try, the fact is that when the incident (of sexual harassment by the ADOR executive) occurred, Min was protecting the executive and exerted influence on the investigation (of sexual harassment and workplace harassment)."
A media outlet also revealed a controversial KakaoTalk conversation in which Min Hee Jin and Executive A exchanged insults aimed at Ms. B, using terms like "insane" and "bitch." Ms. B confirmed, "Yes, those insults were directed at me, and it’s true they spoke about me behind my back. I understand that CEO Min thoroughly supported Executive A and influenced the internal investigation. They even gathered evidence and filed complaints with HYBE alongside Executive A to undermine my report. Min was completely opposed to any form of mediation."
She added, "It's upsetting because (the leaked KakaoTalk conversation) isn't edited. It's the real wording Min typically uses. While she doesn't curse in front of employees, she often uses such language when bad-mouthing someone in third-party situations."
After investigating Ms. B's workplace harassment (sexual harassment) report, HYBE concluded that it was "difficult to clearly determine that the harassment and workplace bullying were severe enough to warrant disciplinary action." However, they did acknowledge that Executive A's behavior was inappropriate and recommended that Min issue a "stern warning" to Executive A. This recommendation was also noted in Ms. B's statement.
Ms. B added, "At the time, HYBE recommended that a 'stern warning' be issued to Executive A, and they stated that this was within Min's discretion. However, Min refused and said she wouldn't even warn Executive A."
Ms. B also explained that she declined a new position offered by Executive A, saying, "The thought of facing the perpetrator was too difficult. It was a position I had no choice but to refuse."
Furthermore, regarding CEO Min's claim that she facilitated a reconciliation between Ms. B and Executive A, Ms. B responded, "Anyone who works in an office knows how difficult it is to refuse when your boss, who is also your superior, tells you to reconcile with someone you don’t get along with. It’s disheartening and devastating that Min distorted these aspects in her explanation."
After resigning, Ms. B realized that a proper investigation into the workplace sexual harassment incident had not been conducted. She said, "When the conflict between HYBE and CEO Min resurfaced last April, I was also under investigation because I was a former ADOR employee and had worked closely with the executives. During this process, I discovered that my report was handled unfairly, the investigation was inadequate, and that Min had even bad-mouthed me. It was a shock."
"Still, I wanted to live quietly. Even if I went public, I only thought I would receive an apology from both Min and Executive A. It was out of loyalty to the ADOR organization, Min, and Executive A," she explained.
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