South Korean gym faces flak for allowing entry of only 'elegant women' and banning 'aunties'

A South Korean gymnasium has been facing criticism for banning misbehaving "aunties". The centre displayed signs reading - "off limits to ahjummas" and "only cultivated and elegant women allowed". Such terms are often used in the nation to discriminate against older women.

On Blind, which is a platform for verified employees, a post grabbed eyeballs. The post stated that a gym in Incheon City, 27km from the capital Seoul, hung the offensive signs.

The post categorically mentioned that 'ahjummas' were not allowed. The word ahjumma, which is considered rude, is commonly used to refer to older women, especially those over 30 years of age.

Not just the odd remarks, the gym also listed attributes that differentiate "ahjumma" from "women". As per the list, an "ahjumma" is a woman who likes free things regardless of age, gets sworn at everywhere but does not know the reason why, sits in a seat reserved for pregnant women on public transport, secretly throws food waste into a public bathroom or other toilets.

The list also says that "ahjumma" is someone who is frugal and has poor memory and judgement.

The post sparked public outrage.

A comment on the post read: "How did the term 'bad customer' become the same as 'ahjumma'? If you have worked in the service industry, you'd know that it's not just older women who fall into those categories, LOL. Our country is really done for."

However, the gym owner defended it. The owner claimed that the sign of the facility had "suffered damage" because of unpleasant behaviour by older women.

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As quoted by The Korea Herald, the owner, whose identity was not revealed, said, "They would spend an hour or two in the changing room to do their laundry, steal items including towels, soaps, or hair dryers."

"They would sit in a row and comment and judge other people's bodies. They left hot water running for an hour or two, which doubled the water bill, and made sexually harassing comments to young female members, telling them they would bear babies well," the owner added.

(With inputs from agencies)