Daelim, Doosan rapped for ill treatment of workers
By Lee Hyo-sik
Lee Hae-wook, Daelim Industrial vice chairman
Daelim and Doosan have been targets of intense public criticism lately for their ill treatment of workers, causing the government to launch a probe into the labor practices of some of Korea’s largest companies.
Salary workers have expressed a great deal of anger toward companies and their owners, calling for prosecution of business tycoons found to have abused their employees.
A 36-year-old office worker in Seoul, who declined to be named, said the government should make an example out of Daelim Industrial Vice Chairman Lee Hae-wook who physically and verbally abused his personal drivers for years.
“Lee should be put behind bars because I don’t think he is really sorry for what he did,” he said. “He should have visited the abused drivers first and apologized to them. But instead, he chose to issue an apology at the builder’s recent annual shareholders meeting. This shows he is only sorry for being caught.”
Another office employee in his late 30s said those who forced a worker to face the wall all day at Doosan Mottrol, a hydraulic linkage maker of Doosan Group, should be punished in accordance with the law.
“How could Doosan do such a thing to one of its workers? It is so cruel and insulting,” he said. “As far as I know, the CEO issued an apology. But this is not enough. The government should get to the bottom of the case and punish those responsible.”
Investigators from the Ministry of Employment and Labor are looking to confirm the allegations that the eldest son of Daelim Honorary Chairman Lee Joon-young abused his drivers for years.
According to one driver, Lee demanded that drivers stop using rear-view mirrors while driving, and that they drive at fast speeds. If they did not do so, Lee cursed or hit them on their heads.
If the allegations are found to be valid, Lee will face legal action even without the victims filing complaints according to the Labor Standards Act. He could face up to five years in jail or a fine of up to 30 million won.
Daelim officials say that the vice chairman truly regrets the way he treated the drivers. “He is trying to meet the drivers and apologize to them in person,” one company official said. “Such an unfortunate incident will never happen again.”
In addition, the investigators are looking into Doosan’s alleged inhumane treatment of a worker who refused to voluntarily retire. If company officials are found to have broken the law, the labor ministry plans to refer the case to the prosecution.
Officials at Doosan Corp. said the company is still trying to find out exactly what happened.
“The government probe into the case is still ongoing. Our review is not completed either,” a Doosan Corp. official said. “We will let people know what really happened when the two inquiries wrap up.”