LG Electronics Australia is facing a new action in the Federal Court after the Company’s former Human Resources Director, moved to take legal action against the LG subsidary and their current Managing Director for ‘unduly bullying and harassing her” during the execution of her job.

She has also claimed that LG Electronics Korean management, discriminates against Australians in favour of Korean employees.

Dan (Sang Moo) Lim the Managing Director of LG Electronics Australia & New Zealand

Amanda Jackson (seen above) who started work with the Australian subsidiary in 2010, claims that Dan (Sang Moo) Lim the Managing Director of LG Electronics Australia & New Zealand often held meetings in Korean and that he ‘favoured employees of Korean ethnicity, and that he deliberately created an exclusionary work environment” that did not allow Jackson to do her job properly.

One meeting that she called to discuss the issuing of an “unauthorised employment reference” issued on LG letterhead by a member of LG’s air conditioning staff for the purposes of supporting another person’s visa application to the Department of Home Affairs was apparently shut down by Lim.

Jackson complained that Lim’s action and his reluctance to permit her to undertake a “fulsome investigation” undermined the integrity of her role.

She claims in documents filed with the Federal Court in her Fair Work claim that a Korean employee Eun Sung Cha, allegedly engaged in misconduct by providing an unauthorised employment reference that should have been investigated.

Eun Sung Cha (seen below) is still listed as the BOP Director at LG Electronics Australia.

Jackson also claims in her statement of claim which ChannelNews has obtained that when she moved to investigate the matter that Lim asked her, to not “make a big noise of it” and that his actions unduly interfered with her ability to properly discharge her duties.

In another claim that could be damaging for LG Electronics who has a history of issues before the Federal Court Jackson claims, that she was having “difficulty attending to her role at LG Electronics as many of her colleagues insisted on carrying on work communications in Korean, as opposed to English”.

She said, “The constant use of Korean language in workplace matters made her feel excluded”.

She asked Lim if he could reiterate to employees that work communications were to be in English.

In September 2024, Jackson attended a meeting with LG’s Regional HR Director, Emilyn Doria.

Also claimed in the proceedings that during the course of this meeting Ms Jackson complained that Mr Lim was making it very difficult for her to attend to her role, and was unduly bullying and harassing her, and that he was treating her differently to the directors of other teams who were Korean nationals.

She complained that Mr Lim was explicitly favouring employees of Korean ethnicity and creating an exclusionary work environment”.

She also complained that Mr Lim’s dealings with the “national Aircon team,” whereby he intentionally withheld critical information from her, that impacted her credibility among peers.”

So upset with the actions of LG senior management in Australia, Jackson in October 2024, instructed her Sydney solicitors, Nicole Dunn Lawyers, to write to LG to complain that current management had “targeted, harassed, intimidated, and discriminated against her.

She also accused them of bullying her and treating adversely”.

Allegations have also been made that she encountered instances where she was excluded from decision-making and thereby undermined in her position as Human Resources Director, because of her complaints about “the discriminatory treatment of staff of non-Korean descent”.

The matter came to a head when on 19th of November 2024 Jackson was called into LG’s boardroom where Lim advised her that she was being fired.

When asked why, Jackson claims Lim who does speak English responded, “This is not the time or place to go into it”.

She responded “Yes, it is, it’s exactly the time and place, you need to provide me with a reason”.

Lim allegedly responded claiming “Save your words for your lawyers”.

Jackson has hired Nicole Dunn Lawyers and human resources lawyer Mr Haren Pararajasingham to represent her in the Federal Court.

Prior to joining LG, Jackson was in a senior HR Partner role at Ericsson where she led the HR Managed Service function and delivered an entire HR suite of services across Southeast Asia.

She was also the first female Human Resource Manager at Carlton & United Breweries NSW operation.

Spruiking LG’s diversity and cultural policies Jackson once claimed that LG’s Seoul headquarters had in the past prompted the local Australian operation to focus particular attention on building awareness of Korean culture” in the local operation.

Gemma Lemieux Marketing Director (seen above) at LG Electronics Australia has been spruiking ‘Life’s Good at LG Electronics Australia

What’s not known is whether that included executives being pushed to work 12 hour days and six days a week which former executives who left the Australian operation have claimed to ChannelNews.

A former member of LG Electronics Australian steering committee, Jackson claims that twice a year executives from the Companies South Korean operation visited Australia to assess executives for what she described as “leadership positions globally.”

ChannelNews is not aware of any Australians being chosen though a former South Korean Managing Director of the Australian operation William Cho did get to become CEO of LG Electronics Group worldwide.

There was also a Spanish employee who was selected as the MD for Canadian operations.

It’s also been revealed that the Company has a policy of specifically pushing Korean food according to Jackson.

According to the Federal Court’s online system, LG Electronics and the Companies Managing Director Dan (Sang Moo) Lim,  are yet to lodge a defence of the claims made by Jackson.