The government imposed an administrative fine on former ADOR CEO Min Hee Jin after concluding she committed “workplace bullying.” According to TenAsia’s reporting on Oct. 17, Min Hee Jin submitted an objection to the Seoul Western District Court after Judge Jeong Cheol Min of Division 61 issued a decision on Oct. 16 upholding the fine.
Earlier in March, Min Hee Jin received the penalty from the Seoul Regional Employment and Labor Office over alleged workplace bullying and brought an administrative suit to contest it. On Oct. 16, the court found the labor office’s decision lawful.
Previously, a former ADOR employee identified as A petitioned the government, citing psychological distress from Min Hee Jin’s remarks. The Seoul labor office concluded that “some of Min Hee Jin’s statements could inflict physical or psychological pain and worsen the work environment,” determined the conduct met the Labor Standards Act definition of workplace bullying, and imposed a fine.
At the time, Min Hee Jin’s legal representative stated, “The Seoul labor office preliminarily notified a fine after determining certain remarks by Min Hee Jin constituted workplace bullying,” adding, “There is a misunderstanding of the Labor Standards Act, and we are proceeding with a formal challenge.”
Separately, legal battles are ongoing with Source Music (label of LE SSERAFIM) and BELIFT LAB (label of ILLIT). Source Music has filed a damages suit seeking about 500 million KRW (about 380,000 USD), and BELIFT LAB has filed a suit seeking about 2 billion KRW (about 1.5 million USD). The companies argue that statements Min Hee Jin made at an April 2024 press conference—such as “HYBE broke its promise to debut NewJeans first and debuted LE SSERAFIM ahead of them,” and “ILLIT copied NewJeans’ concept”—were false.
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