Music Director Jeon Su-gyeong Files 'Unfair Dismissal' Appeal... Court Rules "Not an Employee"

The Court: "Possesses Independent Decision-Making Authority in Work, Does Not Receive Work Instructions"

Famous music director Jeon Su-gyeong, who composed the theme song for the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics torch relay, filed a relief application with the court after being unfairly dismissed, but it was not accepted.

The Administrative 11th Division of the Seoul Administrative Court (Chief Judge Kang Woo-chan) announced on the 30th that it dismissed Jeon's lawsuit seeking to cancel the unfair dismissal relief reconsideration ruling filed against the Chairman of the Central Labor Commission.

Jeon is a renowned music director who produced about 1,500 advertising music pieces and joined Kiits Seoul, a cultural, performance, and record production consulting company, as vice president in 2016. Later, Jeon was dismissed in 2021 on grounds including spreading false information about the CEO, harassing subordinates, and embezzling company funds.

Jeon filed relief applications with the Seoul Regional Labor Commission and the Central Labor Commission, but when the applications were rejected on the basis that he did not qualify as a "worker" under the Labor Standards Act, he filed a lawsuit.

Jeon claimed that he was a worker under the Labor Standards Act, receiving a fixed salary and being subject to the CEO's work-related supervision and direction. However, the court did not accept Jeon's claim.

The court ruled, "Jeon worked with autonomy and held independent decision-making authority in advertising music production and order acquisition tasks," and "considering that it is difficult to see that he received work instructions from the CEO, he does not qualify as a worker under the Labor Standards Act and therefore lacks the standing to file a relief application."

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