A local court has ruled that the dismissal of an executive of a casino operator for ridiculing the bereaved families of a ferry disaster was excessive punishment, officials said Monday.
The Seoul Administrative Court ruled against Grand Korea Leisure Co., which filed the suit against the National Labor Relations Commission seeking acknowledgement for the dismissal.
The executive, identified only by her surname Hong, tweeted last year that greedy parents attempted to earn a fortune by using their children's deaths, referring to the compensation for the disaster.
The 6,825-ton ferry Sewol sank in waters off the country's southwestern coast last year, killing a total of 304 people, mostly high school students on a school trip.
The government has decided to give around 470 million won ($403,000) to each family of a student who perished in the accident in compensation.
The controversial tweet led Grand Korea Leisure to fire Hong, citing defamation of the company due to her actions, but the National Labor Relations Commission said the dismissal was an excessive decision.
"Many of the comments made by Hong have the possibility of being regarded as an act of libel," the court said. "Still, dismissal is too excessive and there is no reasonable ground for the decision."
The court said employees of the casino operator do not hold the same responsibility to maintain dignity in political expression as public servants.
Grand Korea Leisure is a listed company, though 51 percent of its shares are held by the Korea Tourism Organization, a public organization. (Yonhap)