"Digging into the eyes" verbal abuse, spitting on the face
Workplace Bullying 119 "Application of the Workplace Harassment Prohibition Act"
A man in his 20s who verbally abused apartment security guards with insults such as "Bark like a dog" and "I will gouge out your eyes with my fingers," and forced them to perform unfair tasks like patrolling every 10 minutes, cleaning nearby areas, and delivering packages for several years, was sentenced to probation.
The civic group Workplace Bullying 119 urged a revision of the law to apply the 'Workplace Harassment Prohibition Act' to apartment residents and primary contractors as well.
According to Workplace Bullying 119 on the 28th, the Seoul Western District Court Criminal Division 11 (Presiding Judge Bae Seong-jung) sentenced Lee (28), who was indicted for violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes (retaliatory crimes, etc.) and obstruction of business, to one year in prison with two years probation and ordered 80 hours of community service on the 19th.
Lee, a resident of a mixed-use apartment complex in Mapo-gu who has operated a cafe in the commercial area, is accused of making apartment security guards and cleaners perform various menial tasks and verbally abusing them for several years since 2019.
The court stated, "The defendant repeatedly obstructed the victims' work through unspeakable verbal abuse and threatened the victims in retaliation for their statements related to the criminal investigation. Considering the motive, circumstances, and method of the crime, the offense is not minor."
According to the police and courts, since 2019, Lee, a resident of a mixed-use apartment complex in Mapo-gu, Seoul, and a cafe operator in the apartment's commercial area, has been known to engage in so-called 'gapjil' by ordering security guards to patrol the smoking area every 10 minutes, clean snow and bird droppings near the commercial area, and deliver packages left at the security office.
Victims testified that Lee also visited the management office several times a day, verbally abusing them with phrases such as "Did you come here to poop and pee?", "Bark like a dog," "I am a resident who pays the maintenance fees," and "Just do as you're told, you XX."
Lee is also facing charges for other obstruction of business and defamation offenses, with sentencing scheduled for July 7 at the Seoul Western District Court.
Workplace Bullying 119 pointed out that the current Workplace Harassment Prohibition Act does not apply to special relations such as apartment residents and primary contractors, leaving apartment security guards in a blind spot.
In fact, a survey commissioned by Workplace Bullying 119 and the Office and Finance Ubuntu Foundation to the polling firm Embrain Public, conducted from March 3 to June 10 with 1,000 office workers, showed that 6.3% of respondents identified the perpetrator of workplace harassment as 'customers, complainants, or client employees,' and 3.0% as 'primary contractor managers or employees.'
Workplace Bullying 119 stated, "While the government and National Assembly have neglected this issue, deaths continue, such as the recent extreme case of a security guard at Seon-gyeong Apartment in Daechi-dong, Gangnam, Seoul, in March this year," and added, "The Workplace Harassment Prohibition Act must be applied to 'gap of gaps' such as apartment residents and primary contractor employees, and retaliatory gapjil must be severely punished."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
