Choreographer Who Made Appearance-Disparaging Remarks to Dance Company Member... Court Rules "1-Month Suspension Justified"

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Jo] A court has ruled that the one-month suspension penalty imposed on a choreographer who repeatedly made sexually harassing remarks, including appearance-related insults, to members of the dance troupe he belonged to is justified.

According to the legal community on the 6th, the Seoul Administrative Court Administrative Division 13 (Presiding Judge Nakwon Jeong) dismissed the lawsuit filed by choreographer Yang Mo against the Central Labor Commission, in which he requested the cancellation of the unfair suspension.

The court recognized all the disciplinary reasons against Yang and judged that the penalty did not seem excessive compared to the acknowledged reasons.

The court stated, "Considering the circumstances of the remarks, the presence of an audience, the vulgarity of the expressions, and the explicit rejection reactions from the other party, the plaintiff's remarks constitute sexual harassment or at least acts insulting the dance troupe members."

It added, "The plaintiff's misconduct is severe and at least negligent. The one-month suspension imposed on the plaintiff is a light penalty, and the disadvantages he suffers are limited to not being able to perform and the suspension of entertainment allowances, so it does not appear to be heavy."

In 2018, Yang submitted a document to the director of the National Gugak Center complaining that dance troupe members had suffered personal insults and other damages, which led to an audit by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

The audit found that Yang looked at a female dance troupe member's chest with an unpleasant gaze and said, "It jiggled when she danced," and made remarks such as "You look old" and "Your face is big" to other members.

As a result of the audit, Yang received a one-month suspension and removal from his position. Dissatisfied, he applied for relief to the Seoul Regional Labor Commission and the Central Labor Commission.

While the Central Labor Commission ruled that the removal from position was unfair, it did not accept Yang's request to cancel the suspension. Yang then filed this lawsuit.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.