Lee Hae-rin is a City Desk reporter at The Korea Times, covering social issues, tourism and taekwondo. She is passionate about speaking up for the rights of minorities, including women, LGBTQ+, people with disabilities and animals as well as discovering the latest makgeolli trend in town. Feel free to reach her at lhr@koreatimes.co.kr.
Korean brick factory faces sanctions after shocking abuse of foreign worker
A Sri Lankan worker is seen tied to a forklift at a brick factory in Naju, South Jeolla Province, in this screenshot from a Feb. 26 video obtained by a local migrant workers' group. Courtesy of Gwangju Jeonnam Migrant Workers’ Human Rights Network
By Lee Hae-rin
Korea’s Ministry of Employment and Labor is moving to revoke the foreign worker employment permit from a brick factory in Naju, South Jeolla Province, in response to revelations of severe human rights abuse in which a Sri Lankan worker was tied to a load of bricks by his co-workers and hoisted into the air by a forklift.
The ministry plans to impose the strictest penalty available under the labor law, banning the business from hiring migrant workers for up to three years.
The ministry also vowed to intensify its investigation, focusing on workplace harassment, wage violations and breaches of industrial safety law. Inspection will extend to worker living conditions, compliance with employment regulations regarding migrant workers and the condition of provided dormitories.
On Feb. 26, a 31-year-old Sri Lankan national was bullied by his Korean colleagues while tied to a load of bricks with plastic wrap and being lifted by a forklift.
He entered Korea in December under the E-9 visa employment program, which permits a three-year stay for nonprofessional migrant workers. After the incident, he left the housing provided by the company and reportedly moved between temporary accommodations. The ministry has expedited approval for a workplace transfer, assigning a dedicated agent to help him find new employment and avoid the risk of deportation for failing to secure a job.
According to South Jeolla Province Gov. Kim Yung-rok’s Facebook page on Saturday, a company with good working conditions is willing to hire him and a final decision will be made during a site visit on Monday. The new workplace offers language support and technical training.
Meanwhile, the police have since indicted the forklift operator, a Korean man in his 50s, without detention on charges of unlawful confinement and assault. The series of events come after a video of the abuse, released by a migrant workers’ rights group, went viral last week and sparked public outrage. The video showed workers laughing and filming the incident, while pressuring the man to apologize for unidentified reasons.
President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday condemned the act, describing it as “an unacceptable act of violence against minorities and the vulnerable.”
“We will ensure that no one suffers from human rights abuses or labor exploitation due to their unstable status,” the president said, calling on relevant government authorities to take swift action.