JYP Entertainment Accused Of “Selective Diversity” After Employment Rate Of People With Disabilities Gets Revealed

According to a recent report, among the three major domestic entertainment companies in South Korea, JYP Entertainment (JYP hereafter) has been the most passive in hiring people with disabilities.

JYP Entertainment headquarters in Seoul | JYP Entertainment

Regarding revenue, the current top 3 entertainment companies in the country are reportedly HYBE, SM Entertainment (referred to as SM hereafter), and JYP. The three companies published their individual Sustainable Management Reports for 2022, which included the number of employees with disabilities they have hired in the past year. JYP was revealed to have hired zero people with disabilities between 2021-2022, the lowest among the three.

Jinyoung Park, the founder of JYP Entertainment | Yonhap

Under the Employment of People With Disabilities Act in South Korea, companies with more than 50 full-time workers must hire 3.1% of their employees with disabilities. If a company fails to meet this criterion, it must pay an “employment levy” based on the number of such employees it falls short of.

As of 2021, all three major entertainment agencies had failed to meet the mandatory employment rate. However, according to their 2022 reports, HYBE and SM have steadily increased their employment of people with disabilities. SM had eight such employees in 2021 and recruited nine more people with disabilities in 2022. HYBE, on the other hand, hired only one person with disabilities in 2020, which increased to four recruits in 2021 and six in 2022.

HYBE headquarters l HYBE SM Entertainment headquarters in Seoul | SM Entertainment

JYP, unfortunately, didn’t hire anybody from the category after hiring one new employee with disabilities in 2020. This move has drawn criticism to the company, especially since its rising operating profits hint that it can easily afford to hire people with disabilities.

Between 2020 and 2022, JYP’s operating profit has steadily increased from ₩44.1 billion KRW (about $33.9 million USD) to ₩96.6 billion KRW (about $74.3 million USD). The company’s stock prices saw a 143% rise as well, the highest among the three enterprises. Despite performing well in terms of finances, the company has failed to stick to ESG (environmental, social, and governance) standards, which include fair employment of people with disabilities.

This has led to criticism that JYP only selectively diversifies its workforce based on sales maximization. The company is accused of not hiring people with disabilities to avoid the cost but consciously employing idols from diverse racial and national backgrounds to appeal to a global audience.

JYP’s biggest earner, TWICE, has four foreign members from Japan and Taiwan| @twicetagram/Instagram

In response to the current criticism, a JYP representative told the media that the company is always open to hiring people with disabilities and plans to recruit them fairly if suitable candidates turn up.