The Ministry of Employment and Labor said on the 4th that it is conducting a preliminary investigation into workplace harassment allegations related to the late MBC weathercaster O Yoanna, who passed away in September last year.
The Ministry of Employment and Labor typically directs business sites to conduct internal investigations when workplace harassment incidents occur. Accordingly, MBC launched the 'O Yoanna Weathercaster Death Investigation Committee,' chaired by an outside figure, on the 3rd.
However, the Ministry plans to request relevant documents from the business site separately from MBC's internal investigation to look into the case. The intent is to make an objective judgment based on the documents, as the results of the internal investigation may favor the company.
The Ministry is expected to first review the employment status of the weathercaster. Workplace harassment applies only to workers under the Labor Standards Act. Therefore, if the weathercasters are found not to be workers, such as freelancers, the incident will not be established.
Earlier, the Ministry concluded cases related to workplace harassment involving Hanni, a member of the girl group New Jeans, and a Coupang delivery driver, determining that they were not workers.