Fair and Square (1)
"Isn't there an old saying that you should hear a person out until the very end?"
Ma Seok-il’s voice wasn't particularly loud, but his relaxed demeanor carried a weight that seemed to pierce through the ears of everyone present. "Thank you for focusing again."
As the crowd quieted down, Ma Seok-il continued. "This hiring is being done by the Japanese company 'Sega.' The amount Sega is paying is half of the Japanese average. Logically speaking, if they were to pay the same amount as they do in Japan, would they have any reason to hire Koreans?"
The crowd fell silent in an instant, struck by the sheer rationality of his words. However, that didn't mean the feeling of unfairness had vanished. After all, being treated differently from others is never a pleasant experience, even if one knows that, realistically, it shouldn't be considered unreasonable.
"Therefore!"
As Ma Seok-il suddenly raised the tone of his voice, the heads of the people, which had been bowed toward the floor, snapped upward. "The amount needed to reach the Japanese average will be covered by YK without any conditions! Therefore, you will all receive the exact same pay as the Japanese workers!"
[[[[[WOOOOOOOO!!]]]]]
The people began to cheer uncontrollably. Four times the money they usually earned. The fact that they could make a year's worth of salary in just three months was enough to drive everyone into a frenzy.
"To be honest," Ma Seok-il continued, and the crowd closed their mouths again to listen intently. "If you work for half the pay of a Japanese person, is that really a dispatch or a business trip? It’s exploitation. YK does not want Koreans to be exploited by the Japanese. This isn't the colonial era anymore, is it?"
At Ma Seok-il’s slightly cheeky remark, everyone laughed and nodded.
"Instead, you must do your work properly. The reason YK is bearing such a large cost to ensure you are treated fairly, just like the Japanese? It is…."
Ma Seok-il intentionally paused, and people leaned in, waiting to hear what would follow.
"It is to prove that Koreans are better than the Japanese. You receive the same pay, but you produce better results. Isn't this the ultimate victory? Show them that we are not falling behind Japan!"
[[[[[WOOOOOOOO!!!]]]]]
As the cheers erupted again, a sense of "fighting spirit" began to bloom in their eyes. Just moments ago, most of them had been thinking about just going to earn some quick cash, but their reactions had shifted to a mindset of "I'm going to work until I drop."
The workers, having dispersed to their pre-arranged lodgings, had transformed into people truly determined to work hard in Japan. However, there was one among them who headed not to the lodgings, but to Ma Seok-il’s office.
"Good work."
To Ma Seok-il, who said this with a grin, the man who had been inciting the others earlier bowed his waist.
"Not at all. Rather, thank you for entrusting me with such an important task."
"I appreciate you thinking that way. Why don't you sit down and have an iced coffee?"
"That sounds great."
The man’s name was Kim In-soo. If Ryu Geun-tae was Ma Seok-il’s right-hand man, Kim In-soo was Ma Seok-il’s own confidant. Although he worked as an assistant manager at YK Department Store, this time he had naturally blended in among the people to carry out Ma Seok-il’s instructions.
Of course, they could have announced from the start that they would give the same allowance as the Japanese. But Ma Seok-il thought that would lack emotional impact, so he had mobilized Kim In-soo to create a dramatic atmosphere. In particular, Kim In-soo had an impression of being somewhat dissatisfied with society, making him the most suitable person to be mobilized for such a task.
"In the old days, it was really hard to get ice, but since coming to YK, I feel like I can eat all I want."
"Ho-ho, did Assistant Manager Kim go through those times too?"
"I lived through the 70s, after all."
"True, in our day, it was really hard to get ice. The only time we really got to eat ice was when we were eating watermelon, right?"
"Ah, I know that too."
Listening to Kim In-soo’s agreeing response, Ma Seok-il reminisced about the past.
"When my father bought ice in the summer, it was heaven. When my mother told me to hurry up and go buy ice, I really ran to the ice shop as if my life depended on it. Drinking fruit punch mixed with saccharin on a sweltering summer day... ah, it was the best!"
Seeing the description and expression that could only come from someone who had experienced it firsthand, a smile spread across Kim In-soo’s face.
"Was it like that in the 60s?"
"Yeah. Even in the 70s, it wasn't easy to get ice at home, but at least the price had dropped a lot, right? In the 60s, it was hard to get ice. Of course, there were ice pops, but honestly, it wasn't exactly a situation where every household could easily buy them, right?"
Entering the 80s, the diet of every household improved significantly. However, even if the price of an ice pop wasn't expensive, it was honestly a burden for a household to buy them. The price of one ice pop was enough to make a soybean paste stew with tofu for the whole family to eat.
"Really, compared to when I was young, life seems to be getting better and better. It's worth living a long life."
At Kim In-soo’s words, Ma Seok-il nodded.
"I agree. That’s why it’s so regrettable. If my parents had lived longer, they could have enjoyed this iced coffee comfortably. I’ve heard that parents are the kind of people who are gone by the time you try to be filial, and that’s exactly my situation."
Seeing Ma Seok-il immersed in nostalgia for his parents, Kim In-soo looked sympathetic, but soon changed the subject. He didn't want to see his respected superior thinking sad thoughts.
"Chief, I have one question, if that’s alright?"
"Ah, go ahead. Ask me anything."
Ma Seok-il hurriedly softened his expression and nodded. *'It’s never good to lament in front of a subordinate.'*
To Ma Seok-il, who was forcing a bitter smile, Kim In-soo posed his question.
"It’s nothing else, but why are you giving them the same wages as the Japanese? Honestly, this is an unreasonable privilege. It’s a part that could even be felt as reverse discrimination from the Japanese perspective. Giving the same wages as Japanese people to people who don't even know Japanese while working in Japan? I think this is a huge loss for YK as well."
As much as his loyalty to the company was great, Kim In-soo viewed the situation strictly from YK’s perspective. Of course, Ma Seok-il didn't view this loyalty negatively. He just had one thought.
*'As expected, he’s still a bit young.'*
Still, since he could confirm his loyalty, Ma Seok-il began to explain, appropriately incorporating the story he had heard from Ryu Geun-tae.
"That’s all an investment for the future."
"An investment for the future, you say?"
Ma Seok-il nodded.
"Yes. Think about it carefully. In fact, there’s no reason YK couldn't have pushed through with this, right? We could have just paid them half of what the Japanese get and worked them to the bone."
"That is true."
"But if we were going to do that, we wouldn't have recruited people under the YK name, would we?"
"...!"
Kim In-soo had a rather shocked expression, as if he had realized something.
"But we recruited them as YK. That means giving them the same wages as the Japanese is profitable. It means there’s another benefit aside from working hard in Japan."
"What is that?"
"Perception."
"Perception... you mean?"
"Yes, perception."
Ma Seok-il nodded once and immediately continued.
"Later, let’s say 10 to 20 years from now, other people find out about this incident. Then, what do you think people will think?"
"Ah..."
Kim In-soo realized belatedly what he had missed.
"The public is not as cold-headed as you think. They don't look at reality; they attach a few logics that please their hearts and believe them as if they were facts."
"Studying marketing, I can certainly relate to that."
"Right? The reason people in America eat bacon every morning is because the nonsense that bacon is good for your health spread as if it were the truth."
As Ma Seok-il said, the reason bacon became a staple of breakfast in America is because of marketing. [Eating breakfast is good for your health.] [Eating protein is good for your health.] They had doctors say these two things, and then advertised that "therefore, eating bacon every morning is good for your health," and this captured the hearts of the public. Almost no one cared about the salt or fat in bacon, and even if they did, they were buried by the voices of the public.
Ma Seok-il had heard exactly this point.
"If, say, 20 years from now, someone brings this up, will they praise us for giving them double the Korean wage, or will they curse us, saying we only gave them half of the Japanese wage?"
"If someone other than us brings up this fact, it would most likely be to dig it up to curse us, so it would be the latter."
"Right. Then what would the situation be?"
"It would give the impression that we were exploited by Japan, not somewhere else, so public opinion would become incredibly bad."
Ma Seok-il clapped his hands once lightly.
"Right, that’s exactly it. But what if we matched the wages to be the same as Japan? And with our own money, at that?"
"It seems it would bring a significant advertising effect. If 'someone' just digs it up."
At Kim In-soo’s appropriate interpretation, Ma Seok-il nodded vigorously.
"Yes, if 'someone' just digs it up, we could see a tremendous advertising effect. In short, our YK is investing in future advertising costs."
"Certainly... I think my thinking was short-sighted. I think I learned something big today."
"To this extent, the higher-ups at YK think very deeply. So, Assistant Manager Kim, don't have any worries or doubts, just follow what the higher-ups say. Look at me. I used to work at a trashy small-to-medium enterprise, and now I’m an executive at YK. I think you have enough talent for that too, Assistant Manager Kim."
"I just follow you, Chief."
"Don't follow me, follow YK. YK is a company that rewards you if you work hard. It’s not a company where lines are important."
Ma Seok-il had uttered the best words of his life. That Choi Deok-bae, who was wandering around out of boredom, had caught sight of this would be the greatest stroke of luck in Ma Seok-il’s life.
* * *
The wages for the personnel to be mobilized for this Sega Sonic Festival. Although they said half would be covered by Sega, the remaining half was by no means a small amount. Even if it was future advertising costs, it was by no means an amount to be paid offhand.
However, Yoon-gi did not think this amount was a waste at all, and furthermore, he had already thought of a way to pay it.
"Is the preparation for the Sega Sonic Festival proceeding well?"
At Yoon-gi’s words, Nakayama nodded.
"Yes, we are proceeding steadily with permission from the local government offices in each region. As soon as the final permission is granted, we will begin construction on the festival grounds. Of course, since we have also obtained cooperation regarding the location, the construction costs will not be very high."
"I’m satisfied. In that case, please push forward with one more thing simultaneously."
"What is it?"
Toward Nakayama, who was curious about what it could be, Yoon-gi smiled and opened his mouth.
"Try talking to the broadcasting stations so that this tournament can be aired on television. Exclusively."