NewJeans’ Contracts Removed Key Protections Against Child Labor Violations

Photo by Getty ImagesCommentLoaderSave StorySave this storyCommentLoaderSave StorySave this storyLast year, NewJeans staged a revolt over strict contracts that challenged the foundations of the K-pop industry.

O caso deles, contra o selo HYBE ADOR, girava em torno da alegação de que sofreram “significant negligence” por parte de seus empregadores. ADOR venceu no tribunal e prosseguiu com a demissão de Danielle Marsh da banda; seu advogado afirmou que o selo a estava punindo por “attempted mutiny”.

Agora, a ADOR busca milhões em indenização de Marsh por violação de contrato. Mas permanecem dúvidas sobre a severidade das condições às quais a ADOR submeteu a NewJeans — uma série de regimes de treinamento brutais e termos pessoais incomumente rígidos que estão descritos em um novo relatório do The New York Times.

The harsh reality of K-pop contracts is no secret. So notoriously gruelling are the demands on trainee idols that the Korean government has a contract template to forestall the most inhumane conditions.

But labels are free to stray from its recommendations, and ADOR made several key changes, multiple experts told The Times. Standard language from the template—guaranteeing rights to education, physical and mental health, and other protections against child labor—was omitted from NewJeans’ contract, signed when the members were aged 14 to 17.

Their parents accepted the terms. But when the mother of one member requested changes, ADOR’s vice president responded, in an email obtained by The Times, “If you do not agree to the current contract draft, including the points above, it may be best to reconsider the contract itself.”.

In the lead-up to the band’s debut in 2022, ADOR drilled the young NewJeans members with little respite, the report suggests. Four of the five members dropped out of school.

They often rehearsed late into the night, sometimes until 2 a.m., and breaks were discouraged, sources told The Times. (HYBE said it fully complies with child-protection laws, works hard to ensure performers’ safety, and does not pressure them to quit school or penalize them for resting.) The contracts gave the label the right to use A.

I.-gerado vozes do NewJeans indefinidamente, enquanto o modelo de contrato governamental devolve direitos a um artista por seu nome, imagem e voz quando o contrato termina.

Other unusual restrictions in the contracts included bans on “insincere attitude,” “inappropriate romantic relationships,” and publicly stating “true or false facts” that could damage the label.

Band member Hanni Pham nonetheless denounced ADOR for its treatment of her and her bandmates in a 2024 testimony to the Korean Parliament. Soon after, the band rebranded as NJZ and performed at ComplexCon in Hong Kong, in defiance of an injunction that a Seoul court granted to ADOR.

Mas a rebelião foi rapidamente encerrada quando NewJeans — ou NJZ — anunciou uma pausa em respeito à ordem judicial.

Os demais membros do NewJeans permanecem sob contrato até 2029. A última atividade deles foi um vídeo que a ADOR postou no último agosto, prometendo um “summer of NewJeans” que não se concretizou.