Lawyer of ex-mayor causes controversy over 'Pence rule' remarks

A seat is reserved for the victim of alleged sexual harassment by the late former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon during a news conference in Seoul, March 17. Joint Press Corps

By Bahk Eun-ji

A so-called “Pence rule controversy” here has erupted again after lawyer Jung Chul-seung, who represents the bereaved family of the late former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, advised male CEOs “not to have a female secretary.”

The former mayor killed himself in July 2020 after an allegation was raised that he had sexually harassed a female civil servant at City Hall who was assigned to work as his personal secretary.

In his Facebook posting, Friday, Chung wrote that when he visited the office of his friend, who is vice president of a conglomerate, a female secretary brought them a drink. “I asked my friend if there is any absolutely necessary reason for him to have a female secretary and he said no, so I advised him not to have a female secretary,” he wrote.

“I used to advise all the CEOs and executives at the companies for which I do consultations, to avoid drinking sessions, meals or even tea time with female employees. Since the Mayor Park case, I strongly advise them not to have a female secretary at all.”

“Even while giving such advice, I'm ashamed that I find myself asking, 'What am I doing this for?' It's deplorable that the world has become like this.”

Late former Seoul mayor Park Won-soon / Yonhap

People showed mixed reactions to Jung's post.

Some people responded that they sympathized with his writing, leaving comments like, “It seems that we have a society where it is difficult to work with people of the opposite sex.”

Many others said Jung's posting reminded them of the “Pence rule,” which refers to the practice of a man avoiding spending time alone with a woman even in the workplace out of concerns over possible in sexual misconduct allegations. It was named after former U.S. vice president Mike Pence, who claimed that he would never have a meal alone with a woman except for his wife or that he would not attend an event without her if alcohol was to be served.

The Pence rule has been criticized for creating a discriminatory workplace culture against women by both restricting their entry into society and operating as a “glass ceiling” for their promotion into higher positions. The discriminatory workplace culture results from men who hold most positions of social and economic authority in the workplace deliberately avoiding contact with women, and thus prohibiting them from receiving equal opportunities and advancing.

“We must create an environment where women can work safely, not an environment that segregates women from men in workplaces,” an internet user wrote.

“Not all CEOs regard female secretaries as objects of sexual harassment. It is only people like Park Won-soon who have a distorted views of the opposite sex who should not have female secretaries,” another wrote. “And such advice should have been given to Park before he died.”