Korean Company Under Fire After Manager Sends Inappropriate Message Regarding Plane Crash

Recently, a KakaoTalk message revealed from a part-time employee of a franchise brand cafe garnered much attention online.

This gained widespread criticism as the person, presumed to be the manager, mentioned the recent Jeju Air plane crash.

Also, you saw the plane crash today, right? There seem to be many people going overseas during vacation. If there’s a chance of your plane crashing, send me a message saying, ‘Find a new part-timer’ before sending one to your mom and dad so I won’t have any absent employees.

— Store manager

After the store was revealed to be the Gongcha Shinsegae Daegu branch, netizens bombarded the store with protests and bad reviews.

On December 30, Gongcha Korea made an official apology on the website.

“We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience and pain caused by the inappropriate remarks at the Gongcha Shinsegae Daegu franchise. They were against the basic values and ethics of Gongcha Korea, and we feel responsible for causing great disappointment to our customers.

After investigating, we found that the incident was caused by the store manager’s inappropriate behavior. We are investigating the matter and will take appropriate measures against the relevant employee. We will strengthen our internal management system to prevent something like this from happening again.

We also express our deepest condolences to those who lost their previous lives and their families in the unfortunate accident.”

— Gongcha Korea

Additionally, the owner of the Shinsegae Daegu branch also posted a handwritten apology in the store.

I sincerely apologize for causing concern to many people due to the inappropriate behavior of our employees. This was caused by my negligence as the store owner and I am deeply reflecting on it. I will do my best to improve operations and employee training to prevent this from happening again. I sincerely apologize to everyone hurt by this incident and I will work hard to regain the trust of our customers.

— Store owner

Previously, on the morning of December 29, Jeju Air Flight 2216 flying from Bangkok, Thailand to Muan, South Korea crashed after landing on its belly and veering off of the runway.

Bangkok-Korea Plane Crashes At Muan International Airport—179 Confirmed Dead