Internal directive not to disclose changes became evidence of intent

log date: 2026. 1. 5

"The year of 2025 being marked by numerous customer data breaches occurred due to vulnerabilities in major corporations' e-commerce and cybersecurity systems. 
Photo by KBS News:  https://news.kbs.co.kr/news/pc/view/view.do?ncd=8447973

December 17, 2025 the Science-Technology-Information-Broadcasting Committee of the National Assembly in South Korea held its first hearing on Coupang, the e-commerce logistics company responsible for the largest personal information leak in the nation's history.

Currently, several ministries including the Fair Trade Commission are conducting investigations based on complaints, petitions, and tipoffs from affected workers and suppliers.

The personal information leak is just one of the varied social problems caused by Coupang. As of today, Coupang Korea is notorious for causing numerous problems in Korean society.

Through its excessive lobbying, it has induced government agencies to neglect their duties, violate public ethics, and abuse their power, all while pursuing only Coupang's own interests.

Workers and suppliers suffering from Coupang's tyranny, unable to stand up to the company alone, have been turning to the prosecution and judiciary for years as a last resort. However, the prosecution has protected Coupang by not indicting, while the judiciary driven by power and money rather than the law, has issued biased rulings. Below is a few examples.

Chief Prosecutor Jee-seok Moon (문지석) on the left, lawmaker Joo-young Gihm (김주영) on the right.

The 22nd National Assembly Climate-Energy-Environment-Labour Committee, the following facts are revealed through the testimony of Prosecutor Jee-seok Moon (문지석) who appeared as a witness at the Ministry of Employment and Labour's audit on October 15, 2025.

Joo-young Gihm (김주영) a member of the Labour and Environment Committee began by pointing out that the issue of Coupang's severance pay arrears was raised and recognized in last year's audit, but this case has not yet been resolved.

In January 2025, the Bucheon District Office of the Ministry of Employment and Labour referred the forementioned case to the prosecution with a recommendation for indictment, but in April 2025, the prosecution decided not to indict, stating that there was no suspicion.

"Last year, when a righteous and tenacious labour inspector investigated and referred the Coupang case to the prosecution with a recommendation for indictment, Coupang filed an objection and a motion for recusal in claiming that the labour inspector had abused its authority, but the Ministry of Labour dismissed both cases." by Kyunghyang News, October 30, 2025.

Prosecutor Moon, who led the investigation team for this case, stated that based on the collected evidence and Supreme Court precedents, he concluded that the Coupang CFS severance pay arrears case was fully prosecutable.

Lawmaker Gihm asked Prosecutor Moon whether it was true that then-Bucheon District Prosecutor Hee-joon Eom (엄희준) ordered the case to be closed without charges and concealed key evidence, leading to the decision not to indict.

Moon answered, "Prosecutor Eom knew of the key evidence that the Ministry of Labour had secured  during the execution of the search and seizure warrant on September 26, 2024. However, Eom instructed me to write a report that could be submitted to the Head office of Prosecution, and asked me to only inform him of the conclusion."

"As recently reported in the media, Eom instructed another prosecutor on my investigating team on the same day to 'investigate only and not indict.' Following the directive, key evidence obtained through the search and seizure warrant was omitted from the prosecution's report," added Moon.

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Coupang Fulfillment Services (CFS) changed its policy to avoid paying severance pay to temporary workers , then instructed management not to inform employees about the change.
Source: Ministry of Employment and Labour National Audit held on October 15, 2025.

According to Supreme Court precedent, even temporary workers are eligible for severance pay if they meet certain criteria based on a practical judgment. Accordingly, Coupang continued to pay severance pay until May 2023.

The problem began when Coupang changed its employment regulations regarding severance pay in May 2023. Prior to this change, severance pay was paid to all employees with at least one year of service (except those who worked less than 15 hours per week on average over a four-week period), in accordance with Labour Law.

The revised employment regulations introduced a "Reset" provision that would waive severance pay for employees who worked less than 15 hours in a single week, regardless of length of service. Nonetheless, Coupang failed to inform its employees of these changes. As a result, employees were ineligible for severance pay based on employment regulations they had not agreed to.

Employment regulations tend to be arbitrarily created by employers, prioritizing their own interests. Therefore, Supreme Court precedents and relevant laws regulate specific requirements to prevent unilateral changes. Coupang pursued the change without meeting these requirements.

Source: Ministry of Employment and Labour National Audit held on October 15, 2025

As mentioned earlier, among the results obtained through the search and seizure warrant, there was a key evidence Prosecutor Moon insisted must be reported.

The key evidence included Coupang's directives to executives not to disclose changes to severance pay regulations to temporary employees, and that any objections related to this should be handled individually.

The existence of an internal directive not to disclose revisions in the severance pay provisions was a strong evidence of intent.

According to the Ministry of Labour, Coupang's "Reset" policy was found to be unlawful after two legal reviews in 2024. However, the results of the legal reviews were not made public, and Coupang failed to take corrective action even after becoming aware of the illegality.

Leak regarding the search and seizure warrants

The Coupang severance pay arrears case highlights the severity of corruption rampant within South Korean government ministries and agencies, stemming from Coupang's excessive lobbying. 

There is an egregious example. Coupang was tipped off about the issued warrant before the Ministry of Labour executed the search and seizure warrant against Coupang on September 26, 2024, and immediately attempted influence peddling to hinder it.

Information on search and seizure warrants is inherently treated as top secret.

How was this top secret information leaked to Coupang in advance?

Prosecutors Hee-joon Eom (엄희준) and Dong-hee Gihm (김동희) have been identified as those who leaked information in advance regarding the Coupang search and seizure warrant. They are said to be close to the Kim & Chang attorneys representing Coupang.

Materials provided by Progressive Party lawmaker Hye-gyoung Jeong (정혜경) at the hearing.

As above materials at the hearings show, Coupang recruited Grade 5 and 6 of Ministry of Labour officials to obtain tipoffs and lobby in advance when labour inspectors from the Ministry of Labour were scheduled to investigate Coupang's working conditions.

According to an article about Coupang's lobbying, "Since May alone, Coupang has hired at least ten officials including eight grade 5 and 6 officials from the Ministry of Employment and Labour, a grade 5 official and a grade 4 official from the Fair Trade Commission, a grade 3 official equivalent to the Ministry of Trade-Industry-Energy, and a grade 7 prosecutor."

Materials provided by Progressive Party lawmaker Hye-gyoung Jeong (정혜경) at the hearing.

The above material shows the possibility that high-ranking officials from the Blue House since 2020 were recruited for Coupang to obtain some confidential information related to government policies in advance and exchanged it for Coupang's benefits.

This shows that Coupang attempted to influence the legislative process by hiring aides of lawmakers. Source: Progressive Party lawmaker Hye-gyoung Jeong (정혜경) at the hearing.

These lobbying strategies were actually quite effective. Coupang faced numerous complaints and petitions alleging poor working conditions and illegal extortion from suppliers under the guise of "sales incentives." However, the government and investigative agencies declined to indict Coupang, and the courts acquitted the company.

National Assembly Broadcasting Live  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1f3Aqkq4uOM

The 22nd National Assembly held a hearing on Coupang in response to the recent personal information leak case. In addition, a two-day hearing, co-hosted by various ministries, was held from December 30, 2025 at the end of last year. 

The public who observed the hearings gained a deeper understanding of Coupang's corruption and its collusion with corrupt officials, and realized the gravity of the situation.

Investigations are underway, and a national audit is expected. High-ranking officials in Korea should be taking accountabilities and conduct a thorough investigation to address the grievance of Coupang victims.

Countless small business owners and suppliers, deprived of their core products which were their livelihoods due to Coupang's monopolistic tyranny, are now facing debt and the risk of closure.

Lastly, Coupang must act with a responsible and mature attitude, sincerely respond to the investigation, and correct the wrongdoings it has made to date.