Disciplinary punishment for the victim over the perpetrator? vs. KPGA internal strife heading toward increasing disciplinary action as procedures go

Jul 11, 2025

Photograph of the progress of the disciplinary committee. Photo courtesy = KPGA Trade Union

The internal strife of the Korea Professional Golf Association (KPGA) over the disposition of high-ranking executive A's abuse is increasing.

The KPGA held a disciplinary committee on the 8th to confirm the disciplinary action against seven subjects. Measures such as dismissal, reprimand and warning were taken.

As the disciplinary action was enforced, the KPGA labor union strongly protested.

In a press release on the morning of the 11th, the union claimed that "six of the seven people summoned to the disciplinary committee were victims of harassment by A, including the first reporter B (the reprimand) and the additional victim C (the dismissal) who recently completed an attendance survey at the Seongnam branch of the Ministry of Employment and Labor." The KPGA has postponed official punishment for the high-ranking officer A who committed the harsh act, and has imposed a number of disciplinary measures, including dismissal on a number of the victims, raising internal opposition."

It also raised the issue of fairness in the participation of a number of board members who had the authority to appoint a high-ranking executive A in the disciplinary committee.

The union said, `The serious matter is that the majority of the board members who have delayed disciplinary action against senior executive A for months are included in the committee,' adding, `It is nothing short of destroying fairness and independence by themselves in that the parties who have reserved the disposition of the perpetrators sit side by side in deliberating on the victims.'

As the KPGA labor union's position became known through the media, the association also issued an official statement and explained it later in the day.

The association said, `Officer A is completely excluded from his duties with an indefinite suspension, and disciplinary action is not 's withholding' and is being carefully approached in a way that respects legal procedures and results as a hasty decision could cause a legal dispute, as the matter has become the subject of investigation by related organizations such as the Ministry of Employment and Labor and the Sports Ethics Center. We will deal with it without any external pressure or encasing it.'

Regarding the issue of fairness in the composition of the disciplinary committee raised by the union, the association said that the KPGA disciplinary committee was strictly organized in accordance with the articles of association and internal personnel regulations. The disciplinary action against some of the employees in question is objectively determined on the basis of obvious violations of regulations and gross negligence in work regardless of their status as a 'torture reporter' " The status of a reporter cannot be an indulgence for violating internal regulations. The employees in question decided to impose heavy penalties only on employees who caused substantial damage, such as 'Discontinuance of Relationship with Customer' and 'Loss of Finance of Association', and most of the employees decided to be 'Guarantee' or 'Warning' as a measure of alertness and prevention of recurrence" he pleaded.

However, the union dismissed the current claim as an excuse that evaded the essence of the facts.

He argued that it was unconventional to punish victims based on documents collected by the perpetrator A by coercion (such as poetry), and that the Labor Standards Act also violated the 「Reporter Protection Principles」.

A, a high-ranking executive, was excluded from his work late last year as the harsh act against B, the first reported employee, was known and caused a stir. The Ministry of Employment and Labor imposed a fine for 'workplace harassment' and the Sports Ethics Center also recommended disciplinary action.

This article was translated by Naver AI translator.