New Jeans member Hanni appeared before the National Assembly’s Environment and Labor Committee on October 15 and gave an emotional and honest testimony about the workplace harassment she experienced at ADOR, her and NewJeans’ agency. Hanni shed light on the dark side of the entertainment industry, explaining the unfair treatment and lack of protection experienced by K-pop idols.
“We’re all human. I think a lot of people are forgetting that fact,” Hanni said, talking about her experience in a trembling voice. She revealed that her manager at her agency instructed a member of another girl group, ILLIT, to “ignore” her. This claim was first mentioned on a live YouTube broadcast on Sept. 11. In the same broadcast, all five members of NewJeans publicly called out HYBE to reinstate Min Hee-jin, a former ADOR CEO who was replaced by Kim Joo-young in August.
Hanni, approached Kim Joo-young (ADOR’s CEO) current to solve the problem, but explained that her concerns were ignored. “There is an atmosphere within the company that is hard to explain in words. So I couldn’t tell anyone. I thought it was all my illusion, but looking at what happened, I think the company hates us.”
Kim Joo-young, who attended the hearing, was asked to explain ADOR’s response to Hanni’s claim. Kim acknowledged the situation, but noted that she concluded that there was no evidence of the harassment claim after consulting with the employees. “We took necessary measures, such as checking with the employees regarding the manager in question. We received a response that it did not happen,” Kim explained to the national assembly. She then added that the company tried to restore the CCTV footage to clarify the situation, but it had already been deleted due to the expiration of the storage period.
“I believe Hanni’s words, and I tried to find a way to prove her claim, but unfortunately failed,” Kim said, expressing regret over the conflicting claims.
During her testimony, Hanni emphasized that K-pop artists should be treated more humanely. Although artist and trainee contracts may differ from regular employees, they also claimed to be respected. “I understand that artist and trainee contracts may differ from regular employees, but we are all human,” Hani said.
The imbalance of how K-pop idols are treated compared to their regular employees has become a major issue at the hearing. Hanni’s experience suggested that ADOR’s internal policy of mutual respect did not protect her from unfair treatment.
Towards the end of the hearing, Kim promised to review ADOR’s internal rules on workplace harassment and take better care of the company’s artists. “We will strengthen the protection of artists and staff, and try to prevent such incidents from happening again,” she told the committee.
Beyond the issue of artist treatment, the hearing also covered the working conditions of employees at HYBE, ADOR’s parent company. In 2022, there were reports that an employee died after working excessively overtime, highlighting the burden placed on both employees and artists under the high pressure of the K-pop industry. Rep. Jeong Hye-kyung of the democratic party urged HYBE to provide a safer and healthier working environment, criticizing the industry for forcing young people to push their limits for their dreams.
Hani’s emotional testimony resonated greatly with fans and industry insiders. Her courage to deal with the issue publicly is expected to draw a broad discussion about the labor rights and protection of K-pop idols. Amid the global growing industry, there is growing pressure for entertainment companies to prioritize the welfare of artists and employees.
The promise made by CEO Kim Joo-young and ADOR is a step in a positive direction, but fans and advocates hope that real change will follow to respect and protect the human rights of K-pop idols.
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