Samsung Electronics, the leader in the global computer chip and smartphone industries, is South Korea’s biggest company, with about 100,000 workers. An AP investigation found South Korean authorities let Samsung withhold from sick workers and their families crucial information about the chemicals they are exposed to at its computer chip and display factories.
A worker-safety group has documented more than 200 cases of serious illnesses including leukemia, lupus, lymphoma and multiple sclerosis among former Samsung semiconductor and LCD workers. Seventy-six have died, most in their 20s and 30s.
It is extremely difficult for workers to get compensation for occupational diseases from the South Korean government, and without details on their exposure to toxins in their workplaces it is almost impossible.