SOUTH KOREA Law and Practice Contributed by: Sang Wook Cho, Soojung Lee, Seung Hyun Lee, Tae Eun Lee and Christopher Mandel, Yulchon LLC
ods and admissibility of evidence, and court- ordered victim compensation ex officio). In the past year, with the continued rise in digital sex - ual crimes driven by technological developments, a statutory amendment was enacted to expand both the authorities responsible for providing support for the removal of illegal recordings and the scope of content eligible for such assistance. 8.3 Other Forms of Discrimination and/ or Harassment Including Bullying and/or Mobbing Various forms of discrimination and harassment are prohibited under Korean law. Discrimination The most notable forms of prohibited discrimination, subject to meaningful penalties or remedies, include discrimination on the basis of: • age; • gender; • disability; • nationality; and • fixed-term, part-time or dispatch-agency status. Among these, gender discrimination is defined to occur when “an employer discriminates against an employee in employment or working conditions, or takes any other disadvantageous measures without any justifiable reason, on grounds of gender, mar - riage, status within family, pregnancy or childbirth, etc, (including where, even if the employer equally applies employment or working conditions, the number of men or women capable of satisfying such conditions is remarkably fewer in comparison with the opposite gender, thus putting the opposite gender at a disad - vantage, and the said conditions may not be attested to be justifiable) [except where job duties inevitably require a specific gender or where lawful affirmative- action measures are taken].” Korean law prohibits gender discrimination in employ - ment. It allows for the imposition of fines or penal - ties on employers who violate these provisions and includes joint penalty provisions that enable both indi - viduals and companies to be held accountable.
If (i) an employee experiences discriminatory treat - ment (mostly gender based) pertaining to hiring, wag - es, promotion, terminations; (ii) an employer fails to take adequate actions in relation to workplace sexual harassment; or (iii) an employer takes adverse action on account of experiencing or reporting workplace sexual harassment claims, the affected employee may file a petition for correction, or request mediation or arbitration at the Labour Relations Commission. If an employer fails to comply with a confirmed corrective order after any appeals and challenges are completed or waived, the employee may report the violation to the Ministry of Employment and Labour. Harassment (Including Bullying and Mobbing) Korean law prohibits workplace harassment, including bullying, mobbing and related behaviour. Workplace harassment is defined as occurring when “an employ - er or employee causes physical or mental suffering to other employees or deteriorates the work environ - ment beyond the appropriate scope of work by taking advantage of superiority in rank, relationship, etc. in the workplace.” Workplace harassment complaints are subject to virtually identical obligations as workplace sexual harassment complaints, including an obligation to promptly investigate, take protective actions during and after an investigation, and take appropriate action against a harasser. Employers with ten or more employees are required to prepare and file employment rules, and they must include (among other things) anti-harassment provi - sions in those employment rules. 8.4 Criminal Cases There are no mandatory special procedures that employers must follow when they become aware of suspected criminal conduct. However, certain laws impose a duty to report to investigative authorities in specific circumstances. For example, there is a legal obligation on the heads of certain financial companies to report employees who violate the law to investiga - tive authorities, with fines for non-compliance. Simi - larly, the heads of state agencies, local governments, or certain public organisations are required to imme - diately report incidents of sexual violence occurring
349 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook