Advertisement

South Korea voting video pulled after public outcry over workplace abuse and misogyny

Local authorities in Gyeongsan issued an apology for a video that showed a male supervisor assaulting a female employee and subsequently removed the clip

Reading Time:2 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
2
A screenshot of a promotional video created from Gyeongsan city government was removed after a public outcry. Photo: Handout
A video encouraging South Koreans to vote in next week’s presidential elections has sparked public outrage after it featured a male supervisor assaulting a female employee, leading to an apology from local authorities.

Gyeongsan, a city located about 300km (186 miles) southeast of Seoul, shared a 49-second video on its YouTube channel on Monday to encourage residents to participate in the election on June 3.

In the video, a male supervisor is shown throwing a crumpled a piece of paper at a junior worker, Korea JoongAng Daily reported. Additionally, he pressed his finger to her forehead and hit her on the head with a file folder.

Advertisement

Later in the video, she bites the supervisor’s finger in frustration, with the caption, “Don’t bite – ask about the candidate’s policies”.

The supervisor then grabs the woman’s hair after she teased him about his receding hairline, which was accompanied by the words, “Don’t pick on others – pick your rights”.

Advertisement

The video ended with the tag line, “Don’t take shots at others – focus on hope for tomorrow”, but only after if it showed a colleague removing the woman’s desk from the office after she was caught gossiping about the supervisor.

Advertisement
Select Voice
Choose your listening speed
Get through articles 2x faster
1.25x
250 WPM
Slow
Average
Fast
1.25x