'Nut rage sisters' feared to fan anti-biz sentiment
By Nam Hyun-woo
.jpg?w=728)
Cho Hyun-min
Cho Hyun-ah
The recent case of a Korean Air “heiress rage” is feared to escalate anti-business sentiment here, according to industry analysts Monday, as public trust of family-controlled conglomerates has been waning rapidly.
The analysts are concerned the increasingly negative public opinions toward large companies and their owners could adversely affect corporate activities as policymakers and politicians are more inclined to adopt policies unfriendly toward businesses.
“In the wake of former President Park Geun-hye's corruption scandal, the reputations of and public trust in businesses have gotten worse, and the government is being tough on conglomerates,” said an official at one of Korea's large business associations who declined to be named.
“With the Cho sisters' cases dealing another blow to the existing anti-business sentiment, there is a concern those pressures may cause companies to spare themselves from conducting business activities more aggressively,” he said.
“What we expect from heirs and heiresses of chaebol families is them showing leadership for their employees, not throwing tantrums,” an official at a Seoul-based large firm said. “What they need to do so they can be acknowledged as respectful company owners for more than just their stake in the company, is to exercise their capacity and trustworthiness as leaders.”
The public sentiment toward businesses is far from friendly and trustworthy.
According to a trust barometer survey by the global marketing and PR firm Edelman, the percentage of trust of businesses among Koreans who were surveyed improved to 36 percent in this year’s survey from 29 percent last year. During the same period, the average of 28 countries surveyed remained steady at 52 percent.
The survey was done between Oct. 28 and Nov. 20 last year with more than 33,000 respondents in 28 countries.
On Monday, Korean Air suspended Cho Hyun-min, its marketing executive and second daughter of Chairman Cho Yang-ho, from her post until the end of a police investigation into an allegation that she yelled and threw a water bottle at a manager of an ad agency during a business meeting at her office in Seoul, March 16.
In the statement, the airline said it will “take appropriate measures after the police investigation of Cho,” and it is “refraining from making comments because the issue is under investigation.”
Cho returned home on Sunday as public anger flared up over her alleged misbehavior. Police and the prosecution are looking into the “water” rage, while additional allegations were raised that she had verbally abused her employees oftentimes in the past.
Cho is the younger sister of Cho Hyun-ah, or Heather Cho, who was indicted in 2014 for violating aviation security and related laws after the “nut rage” case, which became global gossip after she ordered her flight back to the gate in New York because she was upset about the way her nuts were served on the plane.
The sisters’ misbehavior is dealing another heavy blow to the image of conglomerates here, which are already tarnished amid a series of non-business-related incidents by owner families.
Kim Dong-seon, the third son of Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn, was investigated last year by the prosecution for assaulting lawyers at a dinner party, which triggered a consumer boycott of Hanwha affiliates.
Former DB Group Chairman Kim Jun-ki also stirred a controversy after being embroiled in a sexual harassment scandal, while several other company and business group heads have made headlines with their misbehavior in recent years.