[Sportschosun Baek Ji-eun] Victims of the wage arrears scandal voiced their anger at Cha Gawon, chairman of ONE HUNDRED.
More than 100 executives and employees from ONE HUNDRED, Big Planet Made Entertainment, and INB100 issued a statement on the 16th under the name of the "Victims' Employees Group from the Three Companies."
In the statement, the employees said they were deeply disappointed that Cha Gawon's side had recently posted an apology on YouTube and other platforms, claiming the long-running wage arrears issue would soon be resolved, while allegedly using a non-punishment agreement as leverage and mocking the victims.
They added that while Cha Gawon enjoys a lavish life in expensive foreign cars, employees have gone months without their overdue salaries and are suffering severe financial hardship. They said Cha Gawon's legal representative, attorney Hyun Dong-yeop of Hwageum Law Firm, was mocking the victims by saying that even if a non-punishment agreement is submitted to investigators or a court, it is difficult for the victim to withdraw it, and that "you can just file fraud charges if wages are not paid after signing a non-punishment agreement."
They also urged the Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) to examine whether attaching conditions such as a request for a non-punishment agreement to wages that should have been paid in the first place goes against the purpose of labor law. They said they plan to continue asking investigators to look into the alleged criminal misuse of hundreds of billions of won in company funds that were transferred to Cha Gawon personally or to related companies. They added that more than 100 employees have suffered from unpaid four major insurance contributions, wage arrears, and unsettled severance pay.
Separately, Cha, who co-founded ONE HUNDRED with MC Mong, has faced controversy after artists under the label, including Lee Seung-gi, Taemin, Lee Moo-jin, and VIVIZ, notified the company that they were terminating their exclusive contracts over unpaid settlements. It was later revealed that the company had also failed to pay employee wages and payments owed to partner vendors. In a separate case, police have applied for an arrest warrant for Cha on charges including fraud under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes.
The following is the full statement from the employees' group.
We, the "Victims' Employees Group from the Three Companies," are appalled that Cha Gawon's side has recently posted an apology on YouTube and other platforms, claiming the long-running wage arrears issue will soon be resolved, while behind the scenes using a non-punishment agreement as leverage and mocking the victims.
We strongly regret this attitude from Cha Gawon's side. We hope they will quickly present a responsible solution and state the following four positions.
First, Cha Gawon's side says it will deposit the wages if employees sign a non-punishment agreement, but the proper order is to pay the overdue wages first before asking employees to sign anything.
While Cha Gawon enjoys a lavish life in expensive foreign cars, employees have gone months without their overdue salaries and are suffering severe financial hardship. Wages should never be tied to any condition, and a non-punishment agreement, which should be left to the goodwill of employees, must not be used as leverage for wage payment.
Second, Cha Gawon's legal representative, attorney Hyun Dong-yeop of Hwageum Law Firm, should stop deceiving and mocking employees and apologize.
Cha Gawon's side says that "if wages are not paid even after signing a non-punishment agreement, then the agreement is meaningless," and that "some employees demanding their overdue wages first either do not understand the process and structure or are spreading false agitation."
Cha Gawon's legal representative even mocked the victims, saying, "You can just file fraud charges if wages are not paid after signing a non-punishment agreement, lol."
However, once a non-punishment agreement is submitted to investigators or a court, it is difficult for the victim to withdraw it. Cha Gawon's side is making claims that are not legally sound, while distorting the issue as if some employees simply misunderstood the matter or are making malicious claims. In the end, they are only mocking the victims.
Third, hundreds of billions of won in company funds were transferred to suspicious accounts.
As far as we have confirmed, hundreds of billions of won that should have remained in the company disappeared and were transferred to accounts belonging to Cha Gawon personally or to companies affiliated with him.
As a result, damage has continued in areas such as employee wages, vendor payments, and artist settlements that should have been paid, and the losses are snowballing.
Going forward, the "Victims' Employees Group from the Three Companies" will continue to ask investigators to look into these suspected crimes. During the investigation, we will provide all the facts about what has happened so far and actively cooperate until the unlawful acts are corrected.
Fourth, we urge the Ministry of Employment and Labor.
More than 100 employees who previously worked at ONE HUNDRED LABEL, Big Planet Made Entertainment, and INB100 are currently suffering from unpaid four major insurance contributions, wage arrears, and unsettled severance pay.
We ask MOEL officials to examine whether this practice of attaching conditions, such as requesting a non-punishment agreement for wages that should have been paid, goes against the true purpose of labor law. We also ask them to consider whether there are appropriate administrative measures that we can rely on, given the mental distress caused by the various forms of mockery and secondary harm being inflicted on our members.
Thank you.
Reporter Baek Ji-eun silk781220@sportschosun.com
