Companies alarmed at deadly virus spread
Ssangyong worker confirmed; rumors affect LG, Samsung
By Park Si-soo
The rising fear of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) has caused alarm in domestic companies, which are canceling employees’ business trips to China and the Middle East, quarantining suspected workers and spraying disinfectant in crowded areas.
Those who recently visited other countries or regions where MERS outbreaks have occurred were told to report their health condition to management. Companies whose workers are supposed to contact unchecked customers mandate them to work wearing masks and sanitary gloves.
“We are doing everything we can to protect the health of our employees. That’s our top priority,” said Samsung Group Chief Communications Officer Lee Joon at a press briefing, Wednesday. “We are fully cooperating with the government and have launched various protection programs accordingly.”
The remark came one day after the nation’s biggest conglomerate with more than 200,000 employees issued a group-wide MERS warning through its intranet, vowing to take necessary measures to keep its workplaces free from the highly infectious disease.
Samsung has imposed two-week house quarantine on employees who visited the Middle East in the past three weeks. It has also asked workers to refrain from taking part in sporting and other group activities. Team leaders are obliged to check team members’ health condition twice a day.
Recent rumors have it that a worker at Samsung Electronics’ plant in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, tested positive for MERS, but this turned out to be untrue.
Hyundai Motor, LG Electronics, SK hynix and many other export-driven companies are also making all-out efforts to prevent the disease infiltrating their workplaces.
Like Samsung, LG issued a group-wide warning through its intranet with a memo containing information about symptoms of MERS.
LG officials were advised to refrain from traveling to China.
Chinese media reported last week that an LG official tested positive for the disease in China, but the news turned out to be baseless.
Ssangyong Motor is on the highest alert as a worker at its manufacturing plant in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, was confirmed to have been infected. The worker, 46, is believed to have been exposed to the MERS virus while visiting his father at a local hospital, in which a MERS patient was hospitalized.
The carmaker has quarantined nearly 20 officials who shared an office with the worker.
“Thankfully, no more case has been reported as yet,” an Ssangyong spokesman said. “We are taking all measures available. Nevertheless, many workers seem afraid of possible infection.”
He said the plant’s assembly lines are working normally.
Airport workers are being asked to wear masks and gloves while on duty. Korean Air is keeping pilots and crew members informed of the latest news about MERS and how to handle people with symptoms on board and in airports.