"Workplace Bullying" VS "Witch Hunt": The Truth Battle of Naver Public Interest Foundation

Another workplace harassment controversy has erupted at Naver. Claims of "verbal abuse and physical assault" are being contested by testimonies denying such incidents, leading to a battle over the truth.

According to Naver on the 3rd, some former employees who worked at 'Happybean,' a public interest foundation under Naver, claimed they suffered verbal abuse and harassment from Manager A, resulting in psychiatric treatment. It is reported that some of these former employees also stated they were physically assaulted. The Naver labor union submitted a petition to the Seongnam branch of the Ministry of Employment and Labor regarding this incident the day before.

However, Manager A, who has been identified as the perpetrator, denied the allegations and claimed to be the victim instead. He stated that the incident became public through media reports without a proper investigation of the facts, and that he is being subjected to a witch hunt. In an email sent to Asia Economy, Manager A said, "I am in a state where it is difficult to continue both my work and personal life," adding, "I will proceed with legal actions after fact verification by a professional investigative agency." He also expressed, "I want to ask the labor union whether they confirmed the facts with me and current Happybean employees," and criticized, "The article was published based solely on the union's report without verifying with the accused and current employees."

Current employees at Happybean have also come forward to defend Manager A. They actively testify that the claims of verbal abuse and physical assault against Manager A are groundless. B, an employee currently working at Happybean, said, "We have all worked without any loud incidents," and added, "It is just a one-sided and aggressive revelation by some former employees; the internal staff have a different perspective."

Given the nature of the public interest foundation, which consists of about 20 people, the internal repercussions of this incident are significant. Following the controversy, Naver has decided to conduct a fact-finding investigation. A Naver official stated, "We are reviewing various measures to ensure the investigation is conducted in a more objective manner."

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