The Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) ruled that the workplace bullying allegations filed by a former NJZ (NewJeans) manager, identified as Mr. A, against ADOR CEO Kim Joo Young were unfounded. This marks the third case involving ADOR to be dismissed without charges, reinforcing the company’s stance that no coercive behavior occurred.

Mr. A had been responsible for handling advertising deals for NJZ (NewJeans) without involving ADOR following NJZ (NewJeans)' independent contract termination declaration in late November last year. ADOR, which maintained that the contract remained valid, considered this a breach of business conduct and initiated an internal audit. In response, Mr. A claimed that the audit amounted to workplace bullying and filed a formal complaint against CEO Kim with the MOEL in December.

According to industry insiders, the Seoul Regional Employment and Labor Office, under the MOEL, concluded its investigation into the complaint and found no evidence to support the allegations, ultimately closing the case without charges. The authorities determined that the submitted evidence was insufficient to establish that workplace bullying had occurred.

Mr. A had previously alleged through media interviews that ADOR lured him under the pretense of a work discussion, then illegally detained him for approximately three hours and demanded that he hand over his cell phone. He claimed this amounted to workplace bullying, which led him to file the complaint with the MOEL.

However, ADOR maintained that the company’s actions were justified. "An employee responsible for managing the artists' schedules (referring to Mr. A) directly contacted advertisers, excluding the company, and facilitated direct contract negotiations between the artists and brands. The manager admitted to this communication, which constitutes a serious breach of the artists' exclusive contract," ADOR stated.

The company added, "We had no choice but to place the employee on suspension and request the return of the company-issued laptop. No illegal detention or coercion occurred during this process. We made several attempts to give the employee a chance to explain, but he refused all of them."

Previous Workplace Bullying Allegations Also Dismissed

This is the third workplace bullying case involving ADOR that has ended without charges.

Another case involved former ADOR Vice President L, who filed a workplace bullying complaint against HYBE executives last September. L claimed that HYBE conducted a forced internal audit and seized company assets without consent. However, after a detailed investigation, the authorities ruled in favor of HYBE and closed the case without charges.

L’s case was linked to a sexual harassment and bullying complaint filed by a former ADOR employee, identified as Mr. B, against L. Some interpreted L's complaint against HYBE as an attempt to interfere with the company's internal investigation into Mr. B's allegations under the direction of former ADOR CEO Min Hee Jin.

Additionally, a NJZ (NewJeans) fan had filed a petition through the National Petition System, requesting an investigation into workplace bullying involving member Hanni. However, the authorities determined that Hanni does not qualify as an employee under the Labor Standards Act. They concluded that the contractual relationship between the agency and Hanni was based on equal footing and therefore did not fall under the purview of labor law.

The consistent rulings in favor of ADOR suggest that the authorities found no evidence of wrongdoing or coercive behavior in any of the cases.

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