[Exclusive] Did Min Heejin Interfere with 'Hanni' Labor Ministry Complaint... Mysterious Conversation with NewJeans Family Member

It has been confirmed that Min Heejin, former CEO of ADOR, had a mysterious conversation regarding the 'Ministry of Employment and Labor' on Telegram with Mr. A, an uncle of a NewJeans member, in September last year. This timing coincides with when a fan filed a complaint with the Ministry of Employment and Labor claiming that NewJeans member Hanni experienced workplace bullying.

There are concerns about potential violations of the exclusive contract, as Min, who was then serving as an internal director of ADOR, shared and discussed potentially negative company issues with an artist's family member. This is viewed as a breach of an executive's duty of care.

According to Telegram chat messages obtained by ChosunBiz on the 16th, when Mr. A messaged "Labor Ministry has started, please call me" on September 14, 2024, Min replied, "I'm getting an IV drip now. I'll call you in the afternoon."

Reports emerged suggesting that Min knew about and encouraged the National Assembly appearance in advance. The Ministry of Labor concluded the complaint in November, stating that "Hanni is not considered a worker under the Labor Standards Act."

The Telegram message "Labor Ministry has started" can be interpreted in two ways:

First, it could be Mr. A asking Min what should be initiated regarding the Labor Ministry.

Alternatively, it could be Mr. A reporting to Min that something related to the Labor Ministry has been started. Either interpretation suggests Min had prior knowledge of activities related to the Labor Ministry complaint, making it difficult to avoid suspicions of involvement. An anonymous entertainment industry insider stated, "While it's difficult to confirm from these partial Telegram conversations whether Min or Mr. A directly engaged in specific activities with the Labor Ministry," adding that "discussions between a producer and artist's family about a complaint that could be considered an attack on the company could constitute a violation of the exclusive contract."

Tampering suspicions (contacting other agencies or organizations before an existing contract ends) against Min are likely to resurface.

Multiple reports have revealed that Min and Mr. A met with Chairman Park Jung-kyu of davolink, an external investor, in August-September to discuss securing 5 billion won in investment and the possibility of "bringing NewJeans over."

Indeed, Person B, who identified themselves as a NewJeans fan, filed a complaint with the Ministry of Employment and Labor (Seoul Western District Office) on September 12, two days before this conversation, "strongly urging an investigation into NewJeans' bullying incident within HYBE (222,000 won ▲ 2,500 1.14%) and severe punishment for related parties if illegal acts are discovered." Multiple NewJeans fans were confirmed to have collectively filed complaints in mid-September.

The incident originated when Hanni claimed during a YouTube live broadcast on September 11 that "when I greeted another celebrity and their manager in the HYBE building corridor, the manager said 'ignore her.'"

As the incident escalated, Hanni appeared as a witness at the National Assembly's Environment and Labor Committee audit in October last year, testifying that "I heard another team's manager say 'pretend you don't see her and ignore her,' and this wasn't a one-time issue.

The Telegram informant is Hyein's uncle. However, just because Hyein's uncle betrayed MHJ doesn't mean Hyein also betrayed MHJ. Their relationship seems to have soured because of Davolink.

The Chosun Biz added MHJ's rebuttal to their article. ㅡㅡㅡ

Former CEO Min refuted this by stating, "The contact from Person A came suddenly on that date, and from the context of the conversation before and after, it's clear that I was not the speaker but rather the one receiving the suggestion," adding "I don't even know the government official in question (referring to the Ministry of Employment and Labor), nor have I ever directed or requested anything. This is nothing but speculative fiction."

source: https://n.news.naver.com/article/366/0001047586?sid=101

MY NOTE: she didn't deny the chats are real. she is saying it was taken out of context.