[Exclusive]Family of the late Oh Yo-an-na gives up on witness testimony against identified perpetrator.. Fine had no effect

*This content was translated by AI.

In the wrongful death compensation lawsuit filed by the family of the late Oh Yo-an-na, a weather caster accused of being the perpetrator decided to give up on witness testimony after failing to appear for the scheduled hearing.

According to StarNews, the family of the late Oh Yo-an-na has decided to abandon their request for witness testimony against the weather caster they personally identified as the perpetrator in the workplace harassment compensation lawsuit related to the late Oh Yo-an-na. The victim's older brother told StarNews, "We decided to give up because it seems they will not come even if we keep requesting." He added, "The October trial was postponed to November at the request of the defendant side, and I expect the arguments to be concluded and a verdict delivered at the next or the one after that trial."

Among the witnesses requested by the family were two individuals identified as perpetrators of harassment, one of whom was confirmed to have undergone a closed-session hearing. The individuals for whom witness testimony was requested include two weather casters identified as the victim's harassers, a colleague of the late Oh Yo-an-na, and an MBC weather team PD requested by the defendant side, totaling four people.

Previously, the Seoul Central District Court Civil Collegiate Panel No. 48 (Presiding Judge Kim Do-gyun) had announced witness testimony for these individuals, but both of the two weather casters identified as perpetrators failed to appear. One of them submitted a statement of non-appearance, while it was confirmed that public service by publication could not be served on the other.

The court had decided to impose fines on those who failed to appear for witness testimony immediately after the sixth argument session on workplace harassment related to the late Oh Yo-an-na on June 18 and re-served a summons, but this witness also filed an objection to the fine decision. At that time, noting that all four witnesses selected during the fifth argument session did not show up in court, the judge stated, "We will proceed with address correction procedures for the two weather casters who failed to appear, and if they fail to appear again, we will consider imposing fines." Subsequently, through the sixth argument session, witness testimony regarding the victim's colleague, a weather caster, was concluded in closed session, and the weather team PD also completed their witness testimony in August.

In this regard, the lawyer of one of the two weather casters identified as perpetrators who has not appeared for witness testimony showed up at the court hearing today. This lawyer met with StarNews and said, "We have been watching this trial continuously," adding, "We plan to make a direct statement after the trial results." However, the lawyer refrained from commenting on the reasons for non-appearance or recent developments.

The late Oh Yo-an-na passed away at the age of 28 in September 2024. The obituary was made public three months after her death in December 2024. Following this, allegations emerged that the victim had suffered workplace harassment from colleagues during her lifetime.

As the issue gained momentum, MBC formed an investigation committee four months after Oh Yo-an-na's death, stating, "We have decided to form an external Jeon Mun-ga-reul (Chairman) investigation committee." It further added, "We have conducted an internal self-investigation and plan to provide maximum support so that the truth can be revealed quickly. We will do everything possible to clarify the exact facts so that the family's pain can be healed."

The Ministry of Employment and Labor also formed a special labor inspection team in February 2025 in cooperation with the Seoul Local Office of Employment and Labor and the Seoul Western Branch, launching a special labor inspection on MBC. While concluding that "weather casters do not qualify as employees," the ministry determined that "there were acts that could be considered harassment." The Ministry of Employment and Labor's recognition of workplace harassment came approximately eight months after the death of the late Oh Yo-an-na.

MBC stated in an official position, "We take the results of the special labor inspection by the Ministry of Employment and Labor very seriously," expressing condolences to the late Oh Yo-an-na and her family. It continued, "We will make our best efforts to prioritize the establishment of measures to prevent recurrence, improve organizational culture, and comply with labor relations laws." The broadcaster added, "We take the Ministry of Employment and Labor's judgment that 'there were acts of harassment against the late Oh Yo-an-na' seriously and will immediately undertake efforts to improve organizational culture. We will take appropriate action against those involved." It also stated, "Based on the 'Organizational Culture Improvement Plan' previously submitted to the Ministry of Employment and Labor, we are already implementing improvement measures," and added, "We will reconfirm and supplement any insufficient parts in light of this announcement."

MBC said, "We will further improve and strengthen systems to address problems that may arise between freelancers or between irregular workers as quickly as possible. We will expand and strengthen the currently operating Clean Center so that harassment or difficulties can be reported and improved immediately. Regardless of employment type, we will improve the system so that colleagues can report anonymously when they become aware of such issues." It also stated, "Regarding the determination of employee status for some freelancers, we will conduct a legal review and implement appropriate measures as soon as possible," adding, "We sincerely apologize to the family again for the unfortunate incident involving the late Oh Yo-an-na."

Meanwhile, on the second anniversary of the late Oh Yo-an-na's death, MBC designated a week-long memorial period from the 14th to the 20th and established a memorial space on the first floor of the Management Center at its main office in Sangam-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul.

Prior to this, on August 31, Oh Yo-an-na's family shared news of the second-anniversary memorial service through the late's SNS account.

Oh Yo-an-na's family posted, "September 15, 2026, is the day that marks two years since weather caster Oh Yo-an-na left our side," and expressed, "We deeply thank everyone who has remembered Yo-an-na without forgetting her over the past two years, mourned with us, and supported us."

They further shared recent developments, stating, "Our family has been going through difficult times to reveal the truth of the workplace harassment that Yo-an-na experienced and is continuing the civil trial even now."

The family also stated, "Yo-an-na's death demonstrated how serious the problems of 'fake freelancers' in the broadcasting and media industry and workplace harassment are," adding, "We hope that no young worker will ever suffer again from workplace harassment, discrimination, or bullying by superiors."

They continued, "We hope that MBC will not forget this incident and will provide a memorial space to remember Yo-an-na. We also earnestly hope that it will be reborn as a workplace where irregular workers and freelancers are respected and no one is discriminated against."

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*This content was translated by AI.