The ministry said that she cannot be regarded as a typical employee under South Korean labor laws where workers are entitled to certain protections, so it decided to close the case.
The ministry explained, "Hanni cannot be classified as a waged worker, who normally must report to a specific location and adhere to fixed working hours. She is rather an independent contractor who is bound only by her contractual obligations to the party involved."
In September this year, the 20-year-old Vietnamese-Australian singer created a buzz after revealing an incident of being ostracized at entertainment behemoth HYBE, the parent company of her agency ADOR. At that time, she claimed that a manager of other K-pop group told the group's members to "ignore" her, implying that she had been bullied.
Her revelation led some of her fans to file a complaint with the ministry, claiming that it should be deemed workplace harassment.
Hanni also appeared at a parliamentary audit last month, where she spoke out about the difficulties she had endured. Debates at the audit focused on whether she should be recognized as an employee in the same way as other workers.
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