hankyoreh

Kim Young-ran (50, left) and Lee Dong-su (58, right), parents of Lee Woo-seok, the 26-year-old who died on Sept. 26 after telling family about how he faced harassment at work, speak with the Hankyoreh on Oct. 26. (provided by D’Light Law Group)

“He was a hard worker, the sort of person who gave his best at everything and didn’t hold back at all when it came to achieving his goals.”

This was how Kim Young-ran, 50, described her son Lee Woo-seok, who died at the age of 26 on Sept. 26 after complaining of harassment within his workplace.

“He had a strong will,” Kim said of Lee. “My son majored in business administration in college, and for a full year he cut off contact with his friends and spent all of his time studying at home and in reading rooms.”

Lee began preparations for the Level 9 civil service examination during summer break in 2019, his fourth year of college. His hard work culminated in him eventually passing the test in the spring of 2020.

“He was so happy when he was assigned to city hall last January,” Kim told the Hankyoreh on Oct. 26.

“At first, he didn’t have any issues in the department he was assigned to.” Kim added. “That all changed in July when he was transferred to a different department.”

“The older workers there told him he had to come to work at 8 am to clean the department chief’s desk and pour them coffee and water,” she explained. “He said he couldn’t do that, and that’s when the harassment started.”

Lee’s new department consisted entirely of technical workers, and as a young administrative worker, he appears to have been out of place in several respects. He would later complain about harassment to his family and friends. He also visited the hospital and was prescribed medication for symptoms including tightness in his chest, anxiety and insomnia.

“Coworkers treated Woo-seok like he was invisible. He said they wouldn’t even answer him when he asked them about work,” Kim recalled.

“For three months, he couldn’t even eat because of the harassment; he ended up losing 5 kilograms during those three months,” she added. Lee finally requested a leave of absence, but ended his own life the day before it would be granted.

His father, 58-year-old Lee Dong-su, recalled his son predicted he would be “as good as new” if transferred to a different team.

“He even tried to get away to another team, but I guess it didn’t work out. Three days ahead of his leave, on Sept. 24, he told his team leader he was going to take a leave of absence, and they said to him, ‘Is that really necessary? Getting time off may not be as easy as you think.’”

“The pressure of knowing he’d have to work in that department again if his request for leave was denied was too much to overcome, I think,” Lee’s father said with a sigh.

By Choi Ye-rin, staff reporter

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