[Sportschosun, Baek Ji-eun] Cha Ga-won, chairman of ONE HUNDRED, bowed his head over the wage nonpayment scandal.
On the 11th, Cha conveyed his position through his legal representative, attorney Hyun Dong-yeop.
Cha apologized, saying, "I deeply regret the delay in paying the wages owed to you, and I offer my sincere apology. I am ashamed that we failed to keep even the most basic promise on time for those who trusted the company and worked hard alongside us."
He added, "The company has been working to understand and resolve internal issues, and as a result, we now intend to pay the unpaid wages. We will explain the specific procedures together through Hwageum Law Firm, the company’s representative, and make the payments as quickly as possible."
Cha co-founded ONE HUNDRED with MC Mong in December 2023. The company expanded by bringing Big Planet Made Entertainment, Million Market, and INB100 under its label umbrella, and became home to artists such as Lee Seung-gi, Lee Soo-geun, EXO-CBX, The Boyz, VIVIZ, and Lee Mu-jin.
However, in June last year, MC Mong was removed from all duties and eventually parted ways with ONE HUNDRED. After that, affiliated artists began leaving one after another, citing unpaid settlements and filing notices to terminate their exclusive contracts as well as injunction requests. During this process, even employees raised their voices, saying they had not been paid on time.
Separately, Cha has faced allegations raised by MBC's "PD Note," including the private misuse of company funds, illegal gambling with MC Mong, and an affair with MC Mong. Cha filed an injunction to block the broadcast of "PD Note," citing serious violations of portrait and voice rights and severe defamation through maliciously distorted editing, but the court rejected the request. After the broadcast, Cha and MC Mong said that all of the allegations raised by "PD Note" were untrue.
Baek Ji-eun, silk781220@sportschosun.com
