[ad_1]
SEOUL: Former South Korean air manager Park Chang-jin never imagined that a bag of macadamia nuts would lead him to a career in politics.
Park, who is now seeking the presidency of South Korea’s third-largest party, was the recipient of what became known as the “fury of the madmen” incident six years ago, when an heir to the South Korean airline forced him to begging on your knees.
The episode made headlines around the world and made it a symbol of workplace abuse in a hierarchical society.
In December 2014, a Korean Air flight from New York to Seoul had a particularly demanding first-class passenger: Cho Hyun-ah, the daughter of the president of the South Korean conglomerate that controls the flag carrier, and a senior executive of the airline. . .
When a flight attendant presented him with a bag of nuts before departure, Cho was enraged and yelled that they should have been served on a plate.
Former Korean Air executive Cho Hyun-Ah (center) was enraged when a flight attendant presented her with a bag of macadamia nuts on a plate on a Korean Air flight in 2014 (Photo: AFP / Jung Yeon-je).
“A flight attendant came to see me … looking half dead, telling me that Cho had gone nuts with her for nuts,” said Park, who was then the cabin crew chief.
Cho ordered both of them to kneel in apology and reprimanded them.
“I implored him to calm down,” Park said. “But I could feel that my dignity as a human was crumbling … It was the longest five minutes of my life.”
Cho pushed him and demanded that he leave the plane, then ordered the taxiing plane to return to the gate, actions that later led to her being convicted of violating aviation security laws.
“Walking back to the terminal was like walking into my coffin,” Park said.
“TRUE NATURE”
The encounter with Cho, he said, had given him “a new perspective on society and the true nature of human beings.”
“I realized that without a change in policy and laws, the status quo would never change.”
LEE: Korean Air boss defeats sister challenge ‘nut rage’
After the incident, Park, who at age 49 retains the clean appearance and polite manner of his former position, was demoted to the same rank he held when he joined the company.
Later, a court ordered Cho and the airline to pay him 100 million won ($ 90,000) in compensation, and he left the company in January to pursue politics full time.
He is now seeking the presidency of the left-wing Justice party in a vote to be announced this weekend.
“MANAGEMENT FROM TOP TO DOWN”
South Korea is dominated by a few sprawling conglomerates known as “chaebol,” whose founding families often retain only small ownership stakes but maintain control through complex networks of cross-ownership, with family members rapidly ascending. in the hierarchy.
Harassment in the workplace is more common in companies run by the parent family than in unrelated professionals, according to Chung Sun-sup, director of corporate analytics firm chaebul.com.
Park Chang-jin (second from left), a former Korean Air cabin crew member and now a member of the left-wing South Korean Justice party, is against family successions within Korean conglomerates. (Photo: AFP / Jung Yeon-je)
“One reason is that non-family professionals are more likely to understand and identify with subordinates because they were once in that position.”
Park believes that chaebol family estates “should stop in principle.”
“But since that cannot happen overnight, we need a system that holds them accountable for their actions,” he added.
“Everyone must be equal before the law.”
