K-Pop stars at the top of the game may be bringing in big bucks, but many others are just barely managing to scrape by due to high costs and low pay. Unfortunately, rules in the scene mean that those who need to make extra cash are simply out of luck. Granted, trainees and rising performers don't really have time for a second job, but even if they want to have another source of income, they're not allowed to because it's against the rules.
Koreaboo explains, "While this depends on which company you're with, most companies don't want you to have a part-time job even though you might not earn enough as a trainee or recently debuted artist." The BBC even states that "some of K-Pop's biggest success stories were built on the back of so-called slave contracts, which tied its trainee-stars into long exclusive deals."
However, some people in the industry are trying to fight this unfair situation. Dong Bang Shin Ki even brought forth a lawsuit over what the group felt was an unfair contract. The group "took its management company to court, on the grounds that their 13-year-contract was too long, too restrictive, and gave them almost none of the profits from their success," according to the BBC. Fortunately, the group won their case, which led "the Fair Trade Commission to issue a 'model contract' to try to improve the deal artists got from their management companies."
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Strict rules that K-Pop singers have to follow - Nicki Swift
