Starbucks Korea to close early for employee education — a first since coffee chain's 1999 launch A Starbucks Korea store in Seoul (Yonhap) Shinsegae Group said Monday it is launching groupwide education on Korean history and awareness of social issues for employees of Starbucks Korea and other Emart affiliates — including Chairman Chung Yong-jin — in an effort to rebuild trust following a marketing controversy.The move follows the backlash over Starbucks Korea's "Tank Day" campaign, which critics say referenced language associated with the May 18 Gwangju Democratic Uprising, a pivotal moment in South Korea's pro-democracy movement. Starbucks Korea is operated by E-Mart Inc., a Shinsegae affiliate.The training programs, led by professors from Sungkyunkwan University specializing in modern Korean history and sociology, will revisit major events in Korea's modern history and examine how companies should consider issues such as history, labor, gender and human rights when developing marketing campaigns and conducting business activities.The sessions will begin Wednesday for headquarters employees and executives, while Starbucks store employees nationwide will receive the same instruction on June 22, when all stores will close early at 3 p.m. The closure marks the first time since Starbucks Korea's launch in 1999 that all of its stores will shut early at once.Chung and the heads of Shinsegae affiliates will participate in a separate session ahead of an executives' meeting on June 24. The chairman recently expanded his leadership responsibilities, taking the CEO role at both Emart and Shinsegae Property.The company further detailed plans to strengthen marketing oversight and institutionalize risk screening, acknowledging that problematic language slipped through the campaign's planning and approval stages.Under the new system, a checklist developed with outside advisers will screen campaigns for socially sensitive issues. The company will also extend review periods, standardize approval procedures and require final sign-offs from other relevant departments before any campaign goes live.Alongside its internal reforms, Starbucks Korea plans to step up its social responsibility initiatives."We will establish a social contribution fund to support historical preservation and commemorative projects, while expanding history education programs for younger generations," the company said.