Joeunbook Sinsago CEO indicted without detention on charges of violating the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act

Seoul National University President Yoo Hong-rim (left) and Joeunbook Sinsago CEO Hong Beom-jun pose for a photo at a development fund signing ceremony held at SNU's Gwanak Campus on Jan. 13. [Seoul National University]
Seoul National University President Yoo Hong-rim (left) and Joeunbook Sinsago CEO Hong Beom-jun pose for a photo at a development fund signing ceremony held at SNU's Gwanak Campus on Jan. 13. [Seoul National University]

The chief executive of educational publisher Joeunbook Sinsago has been indicted on charges of refusing to bargain collectively with a newly formed union and retaliating against its members through unfavorable performance reviews.

The sixth criminal division of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office said Monday it indicted CEO Hong Beom-jun without detention on Wednesday on charges of violating the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act.

According to prosecutors, Hong refused to engage in collective bargaining and penalized union members by excluding them from bonus eligibility, assigning some of them low performance ratings and freezing their salaries as a result.

He also faces charges of interfering with or attempting to dominate the union's organization and operations, and of failing to comply with a remedy order issued by the Labor Relations Commission.

Earlier, the Korean Federation of Press Unions and its Joeunbook Sinsago chapter filed a complaint against Hong with the Seoul Southern branch of the Ministry of Employment and Labor in 2023, alleging unfair labor practices.

The branch forwarded the cases to prosecutors with a recommendation for indictment in a series of referrals between January 2024 and April this year, covering both Hong's noncompliance with the remedy order and the alleged unfair labor practices.


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