Women Facing Discrimination in 'Samjin Group English TOEIC Class'... Are They Happy Now? [Joohee Kang's Video Prism]

'Samjin Group English TOEIC Class' Hits Despite COVID Era
Men Empty Ashtrays and Run Coffee Errands
Suffering Discrimination and Prejudice... Has It Changed Completely Now?
Experts Say "Increase in Female Narratives Will Be an Indicator of Changing Reality"

Still image from the movie 'Samjin Group English TOEIC Class'./Photo by Naver Movie

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Joo-hee] ※ There may be spoilers including scenes and descriptions. 7:05 AM. A woman ties her hair tightly and begins cleaning an office where no one has yet arrived for work. She raises the dust-covered blinds, empties an ashtray full of cigarettes with saliva stains, sweeps and wipes the desk and floor. She also waters the plants. Soon, she gathers with other female employees to prepare coffee for their male bosses. "Three two two, two two four, one one one...." The staff know each boss’s individual coffee, sugar, and creamer preferences. This is the opening scene of the movie 'Samjin Group English TOEIC Class.'

'Samjin Group English TOEIC Class' tells the story of women who graduated from commercial high school in 1995 and work at the large corporation 'Samjin Group,' uncovering corporate corruption, portraying female solidarity and friendship.

Released on October 21 last year, this film has surpassed the break-even point even amid the film market contraction caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, bringing vitality to theaters after a long time. Especially, it resonates with female audiences by depicting the difficulties and discrimination women faced in the workplace in the 1990s.

The protagonists of 'Samjin Group English TOEIC Class' are Lee Ja-young (Go Ah-sung), Jung Yoo-na (Lee Som), and Shim Bo-ram (Park Hye-su), who are colleagues with eight years of experience. They are capable veteran employees in their respective departments but are excluded from important company tasks and assigned menial jobs simply because they graduated from commercial high school.

Unlike their male supervisors, who wear suits, these women wear purple uniforms, illustrating the hierarchy and order within the company. A male junior who joined later becomes a deputy manager, while these women remain low-level employees despite eight years of work, creating a stark contrast.

Exclusion of pregnant women in the workplace is portrayed even more severely. 'Miss Kim' from the general affairs department is reprimanded and forced to leave the company simply because she is pregnant. Witnessing this, Yoo-na laments with self-deprecating sarcasm, "Because we graduated from commercial high school, we won’t get promoted and will just keep running errands until we disappear... Miss Kim from general affairs is our future."

After visiting the company factory, Ja-young accidentally witnesses a 'wastewater discharge accident' and tries to expose it by going to the prosecution. However, the prosecutor dismisses her words and actions right in front of her, saying, "Could you buy me some cigarettes?" This remark carries a sneer implying that a high school graduate woman wouldn’t understand anything.

Ultimately, Ja-young falls into self-doubt facing the invisible glass ceiling and societal prejudice. The groans of people suffering from the wastewater are drowned out by her self-deprecating lament, "What can I do?" pushing herself into a deep tunnel.

Still image from the movie 'Samjin Group English TOEIC Class'./Photo by Naver Movie

There is more discomfort here. Ja-young’s position in the 1990s workplace, such as preparing coffee in advance for her bosses, is not much different from the treatment women face in workplaces in 2020, more than a decade later. The discrimination Ja-young experiences ends when the movie finishes, but the discrimination women face in workplaces today is very much a reality. It never ends.

According to a survey, discrimination and exclusion women actually face in the workplace remain prevalent. The '3 o’clock STOP Joint Action,' a coalition of 10 organizations including the Korean Women Workers Association and the Korean Women’s Associations United, conducted a survey last January. Among 404 female workers, 74% (299 people) answered that they had encountered gender-discriminatory situations at work.

Multiple responses showed: 54.5% (220 people) said, "No matter how many years I work, I never earn more than minimum wage," 53.5% (216 people) said, "I think I get paid less than men doing the same work," 45.5% (184 people) said, "Gender discrimination during hiring," and 44.1% (178 people) said, "Discrimination because I am not the head of the household (breadwinner)."

Additionally, female workers reported experiencing discrimination such as "being called by titles like 'female employee' or 'madam' despite holding positions," and "care labor required at work such as washing cups, serving refreshments, and watering flowerpots."

Thus, the fact that this film, set in the early 1990s, resonates strongly with female audiences in 2020 shows that issues of discrimination and exclusion women face in the workplace have yet to be resolved.

Still image from the movie 'Samjin Group English TOEIC Class'./Photo by Naver Movie

The film industry, which exposed the reality of workplace discrimination against women through this movie, is no different. Within commercial film genres, female characters either do not appear at all or are portrayed as secondary characters assisting male protagonists, rarely leading the narrative.

The gender imbalance in lead roles in Korean films is also reflected in statistics. According to the Korean Film Council’s report released last February, among 190 films actually released last year, only 37.3% (63 films) featured women as leads (first or second credited characters).

Among films with a production budget over 3 billion won, female leads accounted for only 18.6% (8 films). The larger the production scale, the smaller the proportion of female leads. Women have thus been 'excluded' in film representation.

Experts diagnose that producing diverse content about women can improve awareness of gender discrimination occurring in reality.

Cultural critic Jung Deok-hyun said, "The desire for female narratives has been linked to a series of changes in recent years. Women’s movements have arisen in various forms, and many people have started sharing thoughts on gender equality. Although legal and institutional changes are needed for reality to change, awareness improvement is happening through the power of culture."

He added, "Public interest in how women are portrayed and what characters appear is increasing. Content that breaks away from male-centered thinking, and includes characters who may belong to other marginalized groups, not just women, creates universally enjoyable content for all ages and genders, serving as a positive indicator for the reality that needs to change."