The emergence of a case of dispute between EXO -CBX and SM Entertainment has again opened the public's eye regarding the contract system created by Korean entertainment industry agencies.
The term " slave contract " or " slave contract " has recently been echoed by the current legal case that Chen, Baekhyun and Xiumin are currently undergoing. Exactly how do "slave contracts" work and what are they?
The emergence of the term "slave contract" in the K-Pop industry
The term "slave contract" in the K-Pop industry has actually been around for a long time, since 3 members of TVXQ (Jaejoong, Yoochun, Junsu) filed a lawsuit against their agency, SM Entertainment in 2009. This case seems to reveal the dark side of the K-entertainment industry. Pop.
Reporting from KBIZoom June 2, 2023, slave contracts are usually built with strict clauses and articles. Large companies or agencies are looking for young talent from all over the world to be trained in their abilities. The company places these prospective idols to undergo tough training and binds them with strict contracts.
To be able to debut, trainees must pay all costs without any financial assistance from the company. Therefore, it took idols several years to "payback" before they could get their first salary. For example, agency JYP Entertainment estimates that the average cost for 3 years of training is around 700-900 million won, while the cost required for a group's first comeback is around 1.5 billion won.
Even famous K-Pop groups like GOT7, EXID, or GFRIEND take 2 years to pay back the fee. The situation is even worse for K-Pop groups whose popularity is relatively low. Therefore, it's not uncommon for an idol to work too hard to faint on stage or do multiple jobs to pay off the "debt".
The contents of the contract are detrimental to idols
The contents of the contract usually include social restrictions such as dating restrictions. Not only that, exploitation through contracts occurs in various forms, ranging from sharing income to taking financial advantage. Even worse, artists can experience violence and even harassment.
In addition, contracts that have an exploitative nature can be seen through the length of time needed to complete a contract. A contract usually has a term of 6 to 7 years. When someone has a term of up to 17 or 18 years, you can be sure that the contract is in trouble.
The case of EXO-CBX who recently sued SM Entertainment occurred because they were forced to sign a contract with a period of 17 to 18 years. Actor Lee Seung Gi is also a victim of his agency contract injustice. Hook Entertainment owes Lee Seung Gi unpaid music royalties during his 18 years of service.
The K-Pop entertainment industry is slowly improving
Currently, the K-Pop industry is slowly starting to improve. Although it hasn't been seen in a significant way, nowadays some companies have eased the restrictions and restrictions for their artists to give them more freedom in building relationships and personal life.
The Korea Fair Trade Commission also issued new regulations to ensure benefits and protect artists from exploitation. In addition, currently artists or idols also have their own platform to speak out, namely social media. Through social media, all injustices can be voiced out loud so that it is hoped that they can minimize the existence of agencies that harm their artists.
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