Hanni, a member of the popular K-pop group NewJeans, expressed her frustration during a National Assembly hearing, where she accused HYBE’s Chief Human Resources Officer and ADOR CEO, Kim Jooyoung, of failing to adequately address workplace harassment within the company.
The hearing took place during the Environment and Labor Committee's parliamentary audit, with Hanni appearing as a witness and Kim Jooyoung as a representative of HYBE. Hanni reiterated her claims of being ignored and mistreated by a manager from a different HYBE-affiliated company, a situation she had previously disclosed during a YouTube livestream. She criticized Kim for not taking decisive actions to resolve the issue.
Hanni explained that she felt compelled to testify to prevent similar experiences for other artists, saying, "If I didn’t speak out today, this would be quietly forgotten."
In her testimony, Hanni detailed additional instances of mistreatment, including how senior staff members often ignored her greetings—a gesture that holds cultural significance in Korea. She also alleged that a PR director at the company tried to downplay NewJeans' achievements, adding to her belief that the group was being deliberately marginalized.
Kim Jooyoung responded, explaining that after being informed of the issue on June 13, 2024, by Hanni’s parents, she took measures such as reviewing CCTV footage, although only parts of the incident were recorded. Kim admitted that the claims from both sides were conflicting and that the matter was being further investigated by the Ministry of Employment and Labor.
However, regarding CEO Kim Joo-young’s remarks, Hani stated, “I’m sorry, but I don’t think you did your best. There were plenty more things you could have done.” She continued, “Also, you said you would protect us from the beginning, but if you wanted to protect us, you had no choice but to fight. But you didn’t have the will to fight. I don’t think you can say you did your best after that.” Hani continued, “I know full well that if I say that I want you to do your best in the future, this issue will pass, so I hope you resolve this issue quickly before we talk about the future.”
Kim Joo-young said, "I will listen more to the artist's voice and communicate more. Since there are parts where the parties involved have different claims in the current situation, I think it is important to confirm the facts above all else. I will do my best to faithfully cooperate with the ongoing investigation by the Ministry of Labor so that the facts can be clearly revealed."
In addition, regarding the question of whether the CCTV footage was deleted, Kim Joo-young explained, "I immediately requested to check the CCTV and watched it, but I could only see the video of the greeting. I archived only that video. The rest of the footage was not deleted; it is just that the archive period has expired and cannot be restored."
The issue remains under investigation by labor authorities.
[#HANNI - National Assembly]
— NEWJEANS NEWS🇰🇷 (@newjeansnews_) October 15, 2024
🐰Recently I saw on Blind, the (HYBE) employees cursing at NewJeans and I heard the recording of the HYBE PR team downplaying our Japan debut success
🐰Seeing this it confirmed that what I was feeling wasn’t just a feeling
🐰I knew that the company… pic.twitter.com/ingYiBf8J3
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