Photo : YONHAP News
Hanni of the K-pop girl group NewJeans on Tuesday appeared in the parliamentary labor committee’s inspection of the labor ministry to speak about claims of being ostracized at her workplace.
The Vietnamese-Australian singer told the committee that she had greeted the female manager of another group and its members at the hallway of the Hybe building but the manager told the group members to ignore Hanni.
Saying such an incident could happen to anyone, Hanni expressed hopes that fellow singers won’t have to go through such an experience.
She then said Kim Ju-young, who replaced Min Hee-jin as CEO of ADOR, a sublabel of K-pop powerhouse Hybe Entertainment management agency, had failed to do her best in handling the situation.
Kim, who also appeared at the inspection as a witness, said she looked into the matter after NewJeans raised the issue but had not found any evidence supporting Hanni’s claim.
The committee is trying to determine whether the latest allegations constitute a violation of the Labor Standards Act which prohibits workplace bullying and harassment.
The labor ministry says even if Hanni’s claims prove to be true, it would be difficult to regard the case as a violation of the Labor Standards Act as celebrities, including K-pop group members, are not regarded to be laborers under such law.