Bereaved Family of Teacher Alleges "Workplace Bullying"
Repeatedly Expressed Distress in Phone Calls Before Death
Daycare Center Denies Any Bullying or Ostracism
A teacher at a public daycare center in Chungnam was revealed to have made an extreme choice due to workplace bullying. However, controversy is growing as a recorded phone call in which the teacher said she was being "ostracized" before her death has been made public.
According to JTBC on the 15th, the husband of Yoo Amu-gae (female, in her 40s), a daycare teacher who passed away on the 28th of last month, claimed that his wife suffered from workplace bullying at the daycare center. As evidence, a recording of a phone call Yoo made with acquaintances in the past was also released. The call reveals that Yoo expressed her distress up until just before her extreme decision.
The late Yoo Ji-young, a daycare teacher in her 40s who died by suicide on the 28th of last month. [Photo source=JTBC news screen capture]
She said, "Today, I was completely ostracized. What I do is a natural part of the job. Why do you make me do this work? I think I have become disliked," and "If I start work at 8:30, I stay in the car until 8:25 before going in. Going inside feels like hell," and "Why did this happen to me? I lived diligently. I just worked hard. I did, but why do they hate me?" among other statements.
Yoo was also a mother of three children in middle school 3rd grade, middle school 1st grade, and elementary school 4th grade. Yoo’s husband said, "She loved the (daycare) children very much. Even now, looking at the photos left on my wife’s phone, there are far more pictures of the daycare children than of our own kids."
According to her husband, Yoo did not graduate from a related department at university but obtained certification and was recognized for her accumulated experience, leading to her being hired as the lead teacher.
However, her husband claimed that fellow teachers began to bully her because she was assigned as the lead teacher despite not majoring in early childhood education at university.
Furthermore, when Yoo was assigned as lead teacher again this year due to her recognized abilities, the bullying intensified. She appealed to her superiors about this, but reportedly, nothing changed.
On the other hand, some teachers reportedly claimed that Yoo was the one bullying them and stated they would file defamation lawsuits. The daycare center stated that there was no ostracism or group bullying.
The Chungnam Provincial Government Social Service Center, the higher authority overseeing the daycare, has decided to appoint an external certified labor attorney to conduct an official investigation.
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