ABB Korea, which was hit by the 30 billion won embezzlement case in 2017, has been accused of massive unfair dismissals. The National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) ordered the layoffs to be reinstated, saying the dismissals were unfair, but the ABB refused.
According to those claiming to have been dismissed unfairly, ABB Korea began a massive audit from August of the same year after the embezzlement case, laying off 16 people in April and May of 2018.
The laid-off workers claim that the company conducted a thorough audit by employing the digital forensics to recover all data for 10 years and fired them for excessive application of minor violations.
According to Good Morning Chungcheong, Mr. A was fired in 2017 for paying 130,000 won for lunch with four government employees with the credit card of a subcontractor.
From 2011 to 2013, Mr. B accompanied executives of customers of state-owned companies in overseas education programs and paid some of their tourism costs every year.
Among them, the company reportedly dismissed Mr. B in August 2013 due to the problem of paying 150,000 won for meals for participants in the overseas education program of C public corporation.
"We received a coercive investigation by ABB and failed to make a proper statement to protect ourselves due to errors in translation," the laid-off workers said. "The reason for the dismissal was that they signed an English-language document because of the company's coercion."
The laid-off workers requested relief from the Seoul Metropolitan Labor Relations Commission and the NLRC, and the NLRC ordered ABB Korea to reinstate them in November last year, saying that their dismissals were unfair. However, the ABB rejected the commission's order and began an administrative lawsuit. "The company is waiting for the laid-off people to get tired through the time-consuming process," one laid-off worker said.
Regarding the controversy, ABB Korea explained that the dismissals were conducted through legal procedures and that it is not possible to talk about the issue in detail because it is currently being sued.
Meanwhile, in February 2017, Mr. Oh, the financial director of ABB Korea, embezzled some 35 billion won from the company and fled overseas. Oh reportedly withdrew the company money over 73 times and put it into a personal bank account or a separate account. Oh has not been arrested yet.
