It was belatedly revealed that a lead staff member strangled a writer during a variety show filming.
On September 10, the Hanbit Media Labor Rights Center (Hanbit Center) and the National Union of Media Workers' Broadcasting Writers Branch (Broadcast Writers Union) reported that, during the filming of an art variety show in Busan on June 30, a senior staff member yelled at the head writer and ended up strangling another writer who tried to intervene.
Not only the staff but also the general participants in the variety show who witnessed the situation. Despite the writers' demand for action against the perpetrator, the production company instead terminated the contracts of all six writers on July 9 and hired new ones.
Production Company 'A' not only fired the writers who spoke out about the assault by the senior staff member but also failed to pay their wages. Meanwhile, the head of production has started a new company, 'Q,' and continues to produce the show.
Hanbit Center stated, "Labor law violations in the entertainment industry are in a terrible state. From the cases reported to the Hanbit Media Labor Rights Center this year alone, 80 broadcasting staff members across 9 companies are owed about 600 million KRW (450,000 USD) in unpaid wages," adding, "It is even more common for contracts not to be written. The reality is that due to the lack of formal labor contracts and irregular working hours, many workers are not properly protected under labor laws."
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