NewJeans has found themselves at the center of intense scrutiny as tensions rise between the group, their agency ADOR, and parent company HYBE.
The situation escalated after the Seoul Regional Employment and Labor Office dismissed claims that member Hanni had been a victim of workplace harassment. The ruling stated that Hanni could not be classified as an “employee” under the Labor Standards Act, effectively dismissing the allegations.
The recent ruling led to a surge of media coverage, with around 180 articles appearing on major platforms like Naver. Many of these articles highlighted the conclusion that Hanni’s case did not qualify as workplace harassment, and some implied that her earnings disqualified her as a worker. This sparked significant backlash, with numerous articles receiving negative comments from readers.
Interestingly, the number of articles about HYBE’s controversial music industry report—which caused a stir in the K-pop industry—is less than a quarter of that.
One behind-the-scenes detail from the ‘1st Korea Grand Music Awards (KGMA)’ held on the 16th is that NewJeans considered a collaborative stage with ZEROBASEONE. However, since ZEROBASEONE was mentioned in HYBE’s music industry report, NewJeans was concerned about causing unintentional harm to ZEROBASEONE by performing together, and thus, after much deliberation, the idea was ultimately rejected.
On November 13, NewJeans sent a formal notice to their agency, ADOR, stating that they would terminate their exclusive contract if ADOR did not comply with their requested corrections by November 27.
NewJeans took issue with a specific part of a HYBE music industry report revealed during a National Assembly audit on October 24. The report included the line: “We endured days of struggle with the wording ‘New IL LE’ (NewJeans, ILLIT, LE SSERAFIM), but it’s a simple matter of ditching the ‘New’ and starting fresh.” This suggested that HYBE considered discarding NewJeans.
The members demanded, “Identify clearly who decided and directed this instruction to discard NewJeans, ADOR’s sole artist. Investigate what wrongdoings occurred in following this instruction, including acts of breach of trust, and take both civil and criminal action against those involved.” They also demanded an official apology from the manager who told another idol group to “Ignore” Hanni as well as the reinstatement of Min Hee Jin as CEO.
It’s unclear how ADOR’s current management will respond to these demands. Based on past actions—such as publicly rejecting NewJeans’ demands after their urgent live broadcast in October—ADOR is expected to respond by the November 27 deadline.
Some media outlets are revisiting articles about Min Hee Jin’s previous KakaoTalk messages and mentioning potential breach-of-contract penalties amounting to billions of KRW. This raises suspicions that ADOR may have decided to abandon NewJeans and pursue a new direction.
If HYBE genuinely intends to correct inaccuracies and support NewJeans, it would be logical for them to take corrective action. Penalty fees are incurred only when a breach of contract occurs. If both parties seek to terminate the exclusive contract, the amount owed depends on who violated which terms, and it could vary greatly. Speculations about simple calculations based on NewJeans’ earnings are unfounded.
Should trust between NewJeans and ADOR—or HYBE—have broken down, and if NewJeans proceeds with legal action to terminate their contract or seeks a provisional injunction to suspend it, the court will determine who breached the terms. Depending on the judgment, outcomes could vary significantly; ADOR or HYBE might even have to pay penalties to NewJeans. There may also be undisclosed breaches yet to be revealed. Ultimately, the court will decide based on the evidence presented.
Regarding tampering allegations mentioned by some media outlets, “tampering” in the entertainment industry refers to a celebrity under contract contacting another agency before the contract ends. This does not apply to NewJeans’ situation. During the National Assembly audit, Culture Minister Yoo In-chon addressed confusion about these allegations, stating: “I apologize for the misunderstandings caused by remarks that led to some negative public sentiment.”
Whether HYBE is slow to correct inaccuracies or their efforts are being overlooked, inaccurate information continues to spread unchecked. Numerous videos on platforms like TikTok claim that NewJeans will disband on November 27, contributing to the misinformation.
If ADOR and HYBE genuinely intend to protect NewJeans and support their growth, now is the time to act, not just speak. With only two days left until the deadline, immediate action is necessary.
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