POSCO Apologizes for Internal Sexual Ethics Violation Incident... "Preparing Fundamental Reform Measures"

Panoramic View of Pohang Steelworks

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Dong-hoon] POSCO issued an apology after a female employee working at the POSCO Pohang Steelworks filed a complaint alleging sexual violence by her colleagues.

On the 24th, Kim Hak-dong, Vice Chairman and CEO of POSCO, apologized for the recent violation of sexual ethics that occurred within the company. He also emphasized that the company will strictly discipline those involved and take all necessary measures to ensure the victim employee can return to work promptly.

Vice Chairman Kim stated, "We sincerely apologize to the victim employee and their family for the recent unfortunate violation of sexual ethics within the company. The company deeply acknowledges its responsibility," adding, "We will take all necessary measures to help the victim recover quickly and return to their daily life."

He continued, "We will fully cooperate with the police investigation and conduct a thorough internal investigation of those involved to strictly discipline them. We will also hold managers accountable to ensure that the victim does not suffer any injustice, and we will do our utmost to achieve this."

This incident came to light when a female employee at the Pohang Steelworks filed a police complaint alleging continuous sexual violence by male employees in the same department. The accused supervisors reportedly deny the allegations. Notably, the victim had informed the company of these facts before filing the police complaint but suffered secondary damage due to exposure of her identity.

Regarding this, Vice Chairman Kim said, "This incident revealed that awareness of sexual ethics within the company is still lacking," and promised, "We will invite external experts to conduct additional group training on sexual ethics for all employees. We will also thoroughly assess employees' awareness levels regarding sexual ethics through a credible external professional organization and prepare and implement fundamental reform measures."

According to the Pohang Nambu Police Station in Gyeongbuk, Ms. A, a female employee at POSCO Pohang Steelworks, filed a police complaint on the 7th alleging that Mr. B, an employee in the same department, sexually assaulted her. She also filed complaints against two employees for molestation during a drinking party and one employee for sexual harassment. Mr. B is accused of entering Ms. A’s home and sexually assaulting her at the end of last month. The other three employees are accused of molesting or sexually harassing Ms. A during a company gathering. The police plan to investigate Ms. A and the accused employees.