An official meeting between MBK Partners, the majority shareholder of Homeplus Co., which is on the brink of bankruptcy, and the Homeplus Co. labor union was abruptly canceled the same day. The union pushed back, saying MBK canceled the meeting without explanation at a time when they needed to discuss measures for normalizing management and stabilizing employment.

Five Homeplus Co. employees, including An Su-yong, head of the mart union's Homeplus Co. chapter, sit in the lobby of the Gwanghwamun D Tower, where MBK's headquarters is located, on the 10th and chant slogans as they stage a sit-in. /Courtesy of Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU)

According to the Homeplus Co. chapter of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) Mart Industry Labor Union on the 14th, a meeting scheduled for 3 p.m. that day at Homeplus Co. headquarters in Gangseo District, Seoul, between Vice Chairman Kim Gwang-il of MBK Partners, who also serves as CEO of Homeplus Co., and the union fell through.

The company was said to have notified the union by phone around 10 a.m. that the meeting would be postponed. It reportedly did not provide a specific reason for the delay or a future schedule.

The meeting had been arranged after the union staged a sit-in on the 10th at MBK Partners' headquarters in Gwanghwamun, Seoul. In the meeting, the union planned to demand measures to secure 200 billion won in emergency debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing to restart rehabilitation proceedings, whether to pursue an immediate appeal, plans to normalize store operations, and measures to stabilize worker employment.

But with the meeting canceled, the union decided to hold a press conference the same afternoon in front of Homeplus Co. headquarters to condemn MBK's unilateral cancellation.

The union said, "It is hard to accept the unilateral cancellation of the meeting without a clear reason," and added, "In a situation where Homeplus Co. is on the verge of bankruptcy, the majority shareholder must show a responsible stance."

Meanwhile, the Seoul Bankruptcy Court decided on the 3rd to terminate Homeplus Co.'s corporate rehabilitation proceedings. For Homeplus Co. to resume the proceedings, it must prepare a plan to raise 200 billion won in emergency operating funds by the immediate-appeal deadline of the 20th.

Homeplus Co. is struggling to procure goods and operate stores normally due to a cash crunch. Since the previous day, the headquarters and 67 hypermarket stores nationwide have been temporarily closed.

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