Activists report Orion chief to prosecution for worker suicide
A civic group filed a complaint with the prosecution against Orion Group Chairman Tam Chul-gon, Thursday, accusing him of violating the Labor Standards Act, in relation to a company employee in her 20s who committed suicide recently.
The Public Welfare Committee (PWC), a civic group that mainly handles reports of workplace bullying, said it has filed a complaint with the Seoul Nambu District Prosecutors’ Office against the chairman of the confectionary company on a charge of breaching the labor act by condoning the bullying and harassment which allegedly took place at work.
“As president of such a big company, Tam has to make an official apology for the bereaved family who lost their daughter and pledge to take measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents,” said Kim Soon-hwan, secretary general of the PWC.
Kim said the committee’s accusation has nothing to do with the bereaved family, but they demand the company take social responsibility over the death of the young employee.
The 22-year-old woman, surnamed Suh, had been working at a plant located in Iksan, North Jeolla Province, until she committed suicide in March. According to Suh’s family, she left a note, saying “Stop bothering me, I hate Orion,” and “I really want to quit, but money matters.”
In addition, she also mentioned her boss and two other coworkers in the note.
Orion said however, the company immediately conducted an investigation with the union in Orion after her death, but found no evidence in relation to bullying or unfair work orders.
“Police have already conducted investigations twice and they concluded that her suicide was not relevant to the company. Regardless of the investigation results, we express our deepest condolences to the deceased and their bereaved families. The executives and employees of Orion are so saddened that it’s hard to even express this incident in words,” an official of Orion Group said.