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Son Joo-hwan, CEO of Safety Industrial, departs following questioning (Yonhap News Agency) |
[Alpha Biz= Kim Sang Jin] The CEO of Safety Industrial, who has been booked on charges including violations of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act following a deadly fire that left 74 people dead or injured, is facing additional controversy over alleged verbal abuse toward company executives.
According to the Korea Federation of Trade Unions’ Safety Industrial branch on March 24, the union is currently verifying claims regarding inappropriate remarks made by CEO Son Joo-hwan.
The union said Son allegedly shouted and used harsh language toward certain employees in response to media coverage of the fire. He is also accused of raising his voice at senior executives, including vice presidents, criticizing their handling of the incident and overall company operations.
Son is further reported to have made controversial remarks regarding some of the victims, suggesting that they had returned to inspect the fire site and were killed in the process.
The incident appears to have been triggered by earlier media reports alleging that Son had repeatedly engaged in verbal abuse toward employees.
The union clarified, however, that there has been no confirmation that Son directed abusive remarks toward victims, union members, or union officials. It added that the comments in question were likely made during a meeting attended by senior management at the company’s headquarters and that the exact context is still under review.
Attempts by Yonhap News Agency to contact Safety Industrial for comment were unsuccessful.
AlphaBIZ Kim SangJin(ceo@alphabiz.co.kr)
