ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin hits back at allegations of covering up sexual harassment case

ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin has refuted allegations made by a former female employee that she “actively tried to cover up” a sexual harassment case within her company, stating that the employee is distorting the facts.

ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin has refuted allegations made by a former female employee that she “actively tried to cover up” a sexual harassment case within her company, stating that the employee is distorting the facts.

“Despite repeatedly expressing that I no longer wish to be involved in exhausting and draining matters, the continued attacks of distorting facts and false information persist,” Min said Tuesday night in a statement. “Therefore, I am compelled to set the record straight.”

Min has been under scrutiny since local media outlet Dispatch reported that the CEO sided with a male executive in a sexual harassment case filed by a former female employee in March this year. Min's attorneys denied these accusations, claiming that Min made every effort to hear both sides of the story.

The employee came forward via a post on her Instagram account on Thursday, alleging that Min’s previous explanations were false and that the CEO was not a “neutral mediator.” In her post, the employee detailed her harassment, including sexist comments and verbal abuse in the workplace.

The employee also gave an interview to media outlet JTBC, which aired on Tuesday. “I was bullied every day,” said the employee, who remained anonymous. “I mustered up the courage to report my harassment so that it would not be repeated. Everyone around me supported my decision at the time.”

The employee's interview with JTBC on Aug. 13 [SCREEN CAPTURE]

“From the beginning, this issue seemed to have been initiated as a baseless pretext for pushing for my dismissal, unrelated to the employee,” said Min. “Therefore, out of consideration for the employee, who was unintentionally dragged into this matter, I have refrained from disclosing all the facts and have handled the situation with caution.”

Min said that the employee in question was not harassed by the company, but rather the company had to deal with the employee’s alleged ineptitude.

“The employee was not a rookie,” said Min. “She has seven years of experience beforehand, with a total of 130 million won ($95,800) salary without incentives included, which is similar to that of an executive.”

The employee was brought on board as a project leader and executive strategy staff. However, Min said the employee’s performance did not measure up to her salary levels.

ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin [NEWS1]

“Unlike my expectations, she could not even properly handle basic business emails, let alone act as a project leader,” said Min.

“I still wanted to give the employee a chance, thinking a change in environment would make her perform better,” said Min. “So I asked another executive, who had newly joined, to take the lead in guiding her.”

The newly joined executive was the male executive who was later accused by the employee of sexual harassment.

The executive was reported for sexual harassment by the employee on March 6. One of the details listed in the report was how the executive said, “dining together with young women is better than eating with men,” coercing her to attend a dinner meeting with alcohol involved on Feb. 15.

ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin [ADOR]

Min said that the sexist comment was denied by the male executive.

"Considering the amount of experience that the employee had, she was never thought of as 'young,'" said Min.

The employee also had a habit of scheduling unnecessary meetings over meals that could have been handled through email, according to Min. One such meeting, which was business-related and involved an advertiser, had been preplanned by all parties, including the employee.

"I usually try to avoid holding business meetings that are unnecessary," said Min. The ADOR CEO went on to say that the employee often made others pay for the meals and "wasted unnecessary time." Min said she had pointed this out to the employee several times.

Min also added that drinking alcohol didn't seem to be a problem for the employee at the time. "She stayed at the meeting even after the male executive left and ordered more alcohol," said Min. "The employee stayed well into the night, up to 9 to 10 p.m."

ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin [NEWS1]

Min also addressed that the employee was not being framed as a “bum who left after being nothing but a nuisance” or to “neutralize her reports” of sexual harassment, which the employee said was happening in her Instagram post and interview with JTBC.

The employee’s ineptitude was such that many employees in the company thought of her as a “junior,” according to Min. “The records of her problematic performances are left in the archives,” the CEO said.

"Before the male executive joined the company, she cried about her situation and performance on a business trip we went on together," said Min. "She was empathetic to my solutions and her salary being cut. She was looking forward to the male executive coming on board."

"In situations where conflicting claims exist, it is essential to assess the situation based on objective evidence that can be ascertained as accurately as possible," said Min. "Those who are frantically attempting to damage my reputation by making up unfounded charges, arranging events to include other people and purposefully stirring up public ire ought to stop these cruel practices immediately."

BY KIM MIN-YOUNG [kim.minyoung5@joongang.co.kr]