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Controversy over Restructuring at Homeplus Amid Allegations of 'Forced Transfers' to Stores

[비즈한국] Allegations are mounting that Homeplus is pressuring headquarters staff to resign. Some employees claim the company is forcing them to quit by excluding them from work and imposing mandatory transfers to retail stores. Homeplus, however, maintains that these are normal personnel measures and are unrelated to restructuring.

Employees: "Sudden Store Transfers," Headquarters: "Part of Job Rotation"

Person A, who used to work at the Homeplus headquarters, was recently relocated to a store. Their duties now include assisting store staff and replacing product posters and displays. A stated, "I underwent depression treatment for a while after the transfer. I received a very low score on my performance review without any clear reason, and I was subjected to what felt like a threat to move departments."

Earlier this year, A received a unilateral instruction from their department head to transfer. The stated reason was that the department was set to be downsized, requiring a reduction in personnel. However, no specific destination department was provided. A searched extensively for available positions, but as a specialized worker, it was difficult to find new work. Consequently, the company informed them, "Since you couldn't find a department to move to, we will transfer you to a store."

A said, "I also received a very poor performance review. Since I had never received a bad review before, I asked the company to provide objective evaluation criteria, but I never received an answer. At Homeplus, performance reviews are critical enough that repeated poor evaluations can lead to termination, but I couldn't verify why I received such a low score. I continuously raised issues regarding the evaluation and the transfer, but it was useless. A superior even directly told me, 'The company told you to leave, and this is the result of you not accepting that.'"

Person B, who also worked at the headquarters, is now working at a store. They said, "Colleagues from other departments contact me asking, 'I heard rumors about a forced transfer, what happened?' Once, when a superior asked, 'Wouldn't working at a store be nice?', I replied, 'I think it would be good to gain field experience.' Afterward, I was suddenly transferred. When I asked why, they said, 'Didn't you say you wanted to go to a store?' I also received the worst possible performance review."

They added, "I had never seen anyone transferred to a store in this manner before, but this has happened frequently this year. The atmosphere inside the headquarters is currently very anxious."

Person C, currently working at the headquarters, shared that they have frequently witnessed colleagues being suddenly transferred to stores or resigning. "First, they reduce your workload, then gradually exclude you from work entirely. They might even hold disciplinary committees citing minor work mistakes or attendance issues. Then, they issue a forced transfer to a store. In this process, some employees quit," they said. "At first, I thought those employees had behavioral issues or that it was the individual misconduct of a superior. However, some staff who were transferred said they were told by their team leaders that they were 'doing it because the company ordered them to.' They are quietly carrying out restructuring this way while promoting that there is no artificial restructuring despite the crisis in the retail industry."

Homeplus explained that while some headquarters staff were transferred to stores, it is not part of a restructuring plan. A Homeplus official stated, "We periodically and non-periodically transfer some employees who wish to work at stores as part of job rotation. We usually act on requests, though there may be cases where it is directed by a superior," but added, "It cannot be called a forced transfer, and these personnel changes are not part of a restructuring initiative."

Claims of "Same Methods as Past Unfair Personnel Actions" vs. "We Never Pressured Resignations"

Homeplus has faced controversy before for using similar methods to encourage resignations. In 2019, Homeplus reassigned 10 store managers who refused voluntary retirement to a 'Sales Improvement TF' team. They all received the lowest performance scores, and their ranks were demoted from store manager to team member. The managers filed for relief against unfair transfers, and both the Seoul Regional Labor Relations Commission and the National Labor Relations Commission upheld their complaints. Homeplus challenged these decisions in court but lost.

Homeplus employees claim the company has resurrected that method of forcing resignations. Employee D argued, "The current method is taking the resignation pressure tactics used at stores and bringing them to headquarters. All employees forcibly transferred to stores received the lowest or near-lowest performance reviews. They were also assigned to 'responsibility-level' positions. Normally, if a deputy manager-level employee moves to a store, they should be assigned the position of deputy store manager. Instead, they were moved to 'responsibility-level,' which is just one rank above a regular associate. They are using these demotions to cause humiliation."

D added, "Back then, they did it openly; now, they do it covertly and individually. The company has the experience of losing lawsuits when victims took collective action against public transfers. This time, they move quietly by department with staggered timing. That’s why even within the company, people don't know who has been transferred to a store or who has quit."

A labor attorney who requested anonymity noted, "I have conducted labor consultations for Homeplus employees several times. It appears the company is conducting restructuring by pressuring employees into involuntary resignations."

A Homeplus official countered this, saying, "There are cases where some employees received demotions due to disciplinary actions via the internal personnel committee. However, there are no cases of forced demotions without cause. A staff member working as a team member at headquarters moving to a 'responsibility-level' position at a store is a horizontal personnel move."

Homeplus employees are pleading that the damage from these unfair personnel actions is substantial. D said, "I was suddenly excluded from my duties without cause and am being pressured to transfer departments. The shock is so great that I have been receiving psychiatric treatment for months. Some colleagues were disciplined and resigned, and now they cannot find re-employment because their career records have been tarnished. Isn't this completely ruining a person's career and a family? The company might be struggling, and it may need to adjust personnel. But this method is too inhumane. The company's bad practices must not be repeated any longer."

Homeplus stated, "We have never pressured employees regarding restructuring or voluntary retirement. We have no plans for voluntary retirement or restructuring in the future."