BigBang’s Daesung faces criticism over staff salary remarks.

BigBang’s Daesung has come under fire for his comments regarding staff wages, which were made during a conversation with BLACKPINK’s Lisa on his YouTube channel 'Zip Daesung' last month.

On January 28 KST, Daesung invited Lisa as a guest on his show, where they engaged in a casual conversation. At one point, Lisa took a break for a hair and makeup touch-up and noticed Daesung waiting idly. She asked, “Aren’t you getting your touch-up done?”

Daesung replied, “The person who does that already left work.” When Lisa followed up, “Did they leave on the dot?”, he explained, “They left work, but they’re nearby running errands and will come back later. It’s flexible.”

He then added, “But I only pay them for the time they’re actually here. If they’re elsewhere, they don’t get paid.” Lisa, amused by the concept, responded, “That’s not bad. I don’t need a touch-up either, so they can just leave.” Daesung then remarked, “Being a CEO makes you think about things like this. You end up spending a lot of money in unexpected ways.”

While the conversation was lighthearted, it quickly sparked debate online. Some netizens criticized his remarks, arguing that withholding pay for time on standby could amount to labor exploitation. Comments included:

• “Is he seriously not paying staff while keeping them on standby? That’s a clear violation of labor laws.”

• “This is a classic example of ‘kkeokgi’ (a labor rights violation where employers manipulate work hours to reduce wages).”

• “Either Daesung’s entire production team is routinely violating labor laws, or he himself is a victim of it.”

• “This is wage theft disguised as a joke.”

Others defended Daesung, saying:

• “It was obviously a joke, people are overreacting.”

• “We don’t even know the details of their contracts. Why assume the worst?”

• “People are nitpicking over nothing.”

The term “kkeokgi” refers to an employer manipulating work hours to avoid paying fair wages. Under labor law, if an employee is required to be on standby, they must receive at least 70% of their usual wages during that time.

As the discussion continues, some argue that even joking about such labor practices is inappropriate, reinforcing concerns about normalizing wage exploitation in the entertainment industry.

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