Scandal-hit Korean Air chief Cho Yang-ho, father of ‘nut rage’ heiress, ousted from board by shareholders
- Cho is on trial on charges of breach of trust and embezzlement but has denied the charges against him
- South Korea has been trying to make its corporate giants more accountable after a series of scandals
Korean Air shareholders voted on Wednesday against the airline’s proposal to extend CEO Cho Yang-ho’s term as director for three years, ending his 27-year tenure on the board of South Korea’s biggest carrier.
Should he be ousted, Cho, 70, would become the first founding family member of any South Korean corporate giant to be forced off a board, amid growing shareholder activism in Asia’s fourth-largest economy.
A total of 64.1 per cent of shareholders present at the airline’s annual shareholders’ meeting voted for the airline’s proposal, a company executive announced at the meeting, falling short of the two-thirds required for approval.
With his board membership terminated, Cho would no longer hold sway over management issues at the airline, such as recommending directors and appointing CEOs. However, he could retain his titles of chairman and CEO of the carrier.
Cho’s daughter was humiliated in a 2014 incident over “nut rage” on a Korean Air flight. Cho Hyun-ah angrily ejected the chief of the cabin crew from a taxiing aeroplane after being served macadamia nuts in a bag instead of a bowl. She was subsequently ordered to pay 20 million won (US$17,750) in compensation.
Shares of Korean Air rose as much as 5.6 per cent on Wednesday morning after news of the vote. A Korean Air spokeswoman declined to comment.
